There is a shift happening in popular music. The coveted throne that Hip-hop has held over the past few years is slowly being taken over by Country music. The genre of Country has been reimagined and rearranged over its long history and its most recent iteration has skyrocketed a new wave of country stars to the top. In the midst of it all, there are artists who are able to meet the old and new together for a refreshing take on a genre that is far more abstract than its die-hard fans care to admit. Vincent Neil Emerson has a sound that emulates the Outlaw era of the genre while flipping it with modern tropes and jaw-dropping musicianship.
On his latest release, the 12-track The Golden Crystal Kingdom, Emerson has never sounded better. The artist takes you through a whirlwind of lonesome man ballads brimming with imaginative storytelling while crafting twangy arrangements bursting with personality. Produced by the great Shooter Jennings, Emerson created something very special with his latest release, and it feels like he’s just getting started.
The Golden Crystal Kingdom is an appropriate name for an album with lyrics longing for some sense of paradise. Throughout the album, Emerson pens heartfelt novels that focus more on the aftermath of love rather than the rush of emotions felt while deep in it. He brings storytelling to a whole new level, allowing the minimal arrangements to soundtrack his poetic tales. Emerson positions himself as a nomadic figure, boozing and loving from town to town but never truly filling the void, a misunderstood traveling man simply attempting to find a place to call home. On “Time of the Cottonwood Trees”, he goes into great detail about the love of a traveling companion while the following track, “I’ll Meet You In Montana” tells the tale of the fallout. The way Emerson is able to bring you into these worlds and inject the emotional turmoil into you makes you feel as if it’s your own, creating a deep connection to even your most anti-Country friend. Each song is a world of its own, carrying the weight of cold, lonesome nights and setting them to an array of tempos and tones.
Emmerson’s guitar playing has never sounded crisper and more refined. Jennings and Emmerson structured these songs so every small detail of Emmerson’s artistry gets its turn in the spotlight, creating his strongest outing to date. The sleek guitar solo of “Co’dine” sounds like a time portal to the future of Country while “Hang Your Head Down Low” turns up the heat with blistering tempos and a soaring bridge. While his storytelling is the star of the show, The Golden Crystal Kingdom is masterfully produced with tropes of Outlaw peeking through modern instruments and more full-sounding production.
Vincent Neil Emerson has created his best album to date and his artistry is refusing to stop growing. The Golden Crystal Kingdom is a stunning display of Emerson’s natural talents being elevated by minimal yet potent arrangements. His lyrics paint such vivid pictures it is almost like you’re standing right next to the main character, taking in all the sights and sounds of one of the best country albums to be released this year.
