Album Review

Stephanie Bettman’s Latest Single “Beautiful Day”

You don’t have to be the biggest folk-rock fan around to appreciate the depth of emotionality in Stephanie Bettman’s new solo single “Beautiful Day,” as its plethora of melodies give us everything that listeners need to know in its running time. Like the other songs found in her growing discography, “Beautiful Day” sees Bettman experimenting with palatable pop sounds, blending influences from the folk spectrum whilst providing us with a familiar rhythm that doesn’t get flimsy by the second stanza. It’s among the more straightforward singles that I’ve heard in the last month, but if you’ve got an ear for toned songcraft, you’d be seriously pressed to find another track like this one.

The instrumentation is telling us a story all its own in “Beautiful Day,” and I think that, were it not presented in such high-definition clarity, this single probably wouldn’t be as engaging as it is in this form. Bettman is a very talented singer, but the soundscape that she uses as a sonic canvas to apply her acrylic vocal textures is quintessential to getting her point across here. There’s something to be said about the players that she’s gathered together for her backing band, and I hope that they continue to work together as she creates a full-length album with this song’s emotive template at the foundation of every composition. There’s a wholesomeness here you don’t find very often anymore, and I want to hear what it can produce with more creative breathing room.

I am more than curious about what Stephanie Bettman would sound like in a live setting after hearing “Beautiful Day.” She’s got a fetching and rather approachable charisma in this song, and in many ways employs her microphone as a gateway into the storied past of 70s singer/songwriters. Bettman channels a lot of Joni and Melanie here, but even though she’s wearing her influences on her sleeve, her stylish musical persona isn’t rooted in the throwback/retro culture that has gotten a little tiresome in the last few years. It’s one thing to be inspired, but unlike some of the artists making big mainstream gains this spring, this is one singer who isn’t looking to live her life in a time machine.

I haven’t been able to put this song down since I first picked it up, and once you give “Beautiful Day” the chance to sink its hooks into your chest, I think that you’ll share my sentiments. It’s an intoxicating meld of old and new, both retro and surprisingly modern where it matters the most, and even taking into consideration its nonconformist design, it’s still more accessible than the more commercial folk/pop that you might have come across this season. Stephanie Bettman’s career is picking up a healthy amount of steam at the moment, and if this song gets into steady rotation on the college radio airwaves this summer, it’s going to be a lot harder for her competitors in the American underground to keep up with her momentum heading into the latter half of 2024.

Gwen Waggoner

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Ty Wilson delivers grit and heart on new country album “Northern Heart, Southern Soul”

Ty Wilson’s “Northern Heart, Southern Soul” arrives like a long stretch of open highway at sunset as an honest, contemplative, and strategic ballad. Wilson’s eight-song LP marks the end of a project that melds his Canadian roots with the time-tested sounds of Southern country and Americana.

To give the album its sound, Wilson enlisted Nashville-based producer and drummer Jay Tooke, who has worked with groups such as The Steel Woods, Randy Houser, and Wyatt Flores. Production and engineering were handled by Edgewater Music Group, which is based in Texas, and the result is a brief but potent album that embraces the Southern sound he cherishes while retaining Wilson’s unique storytelling.

Always wanting to release a full-length album, Wilson has accomplished that with “Northern Heart, Southern Soul,” and its tied-together story reflects themes of perseverance, love, and contemplation. “Chasin’ Headlights“ is dedicated to his fiancée, a rock that sustains him on his busy touring schedule. It captures the silent grit that accompanies a life on the road. The album’s second single, “Alabama Way,“ is an unabashed nod to the Southern influences on the album after Wilson’s Red Dirt-informed sound.

Filling out the emotional spectrum of this album are songs like “Good Thing Goin’” and “Missin’ the Boat,“ which indulge happy thoughts about romance and momentum, alongside deeper rumination on regret and fidelity in works like “Can’t Live Without Her.“ “Knew You Then,“ with Mason Keck, brings a reflective edge as it reminisces about relationships and the passage of time.

One of the best songs on the album is “Born to Lose,” and it’s a testament to the power of classic country storytelling. The power of hard times and perseverance underlies this song, which serves as a stirring reminder that some of the most poignant voices in populist music are born of struggle. The final song, “Glory, When I Win,” is equally good and provides a triumphant emotional payoff. The song really demonstrates how difficult it is for independent artists to break through. They have to cope with failure and keep going, hoping the next mile will be a winner.

“Northern Heart, Southern Soul” is a brief work at just 26 minutes and 40 seconds long, and it’s about keeping it real. It illustrates how a northern identity and southern influence can coexist, proving that exceptional country music has no geographical boundaries.

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Album Review

Saint Escape sets the past on fire with latest release “Look At What You Made”

Saint Escape isn’t here to reconcile the past, they’re here to torch it. Now, with the release of their new single “Look At What You Made,” Saint Escape have unleashed a punishing, nu-metal-infused anthem that just sounds like an equal measure of reckoning and release. It is loud, confrontational, and honest, exactly what a purging rock record should be.

Produced and mixed by Joe Rickard, Starset, Three Days Grace, Breaking Benjamin, the track delivers a tight punch that fuses wild aggression and arena-sized power. “Look At What You Made” doesn’t stop. Rickard’s slick production redoubles Saint Escape’s raw edge rather than sanding it down, and the song takes on a huge, modern rock sound without losing its bite.

“Look At What You Made” is a primal response to toxic authority figures, the kind who kept order through fear, misinformation, and control, and knew where best to leave emotional scars. On “Look At What You Made,” the anger boiling beneath the surface becomes something purposeful, an anthem for anyone who’s been moulded by manipulation and left in its wake. The effect is communal shake-off, a determination not to be shaped by the past.

And lead vocalist Matt Cox provides a threatening, buffed clean vocal performance, of sorts as well, one that’s heavy with anger and determination. There is rage here, but also clarity, a sense that this is less about revenge than about reclaiming autonomy. As Cox puts it, the song is a purge, a reminder that the future belongs to those willing to to take it back. “Look At What You Made” is a testament to strength and newfound independence, it’s further evidence that Saint Escape are bleeding their past into something louder, stranger, and harder to ignore.

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