Imagine the saddest voice singing yet another sad tale of a man leaving a woman. The odd thing in this instance, however, is the fact that the singer doesn't really blame him. "I won't stop you when you go/'Cause I'd leave me too."
"I'd Leave Me Too"
is a refreshing kickoff to an album that just gets better with delicious
country & western
romps like
"Shove It."
Audrey Auld
's authenticity, curiously, doesn't hail from Texas or Tennessee, but from Australia.
The Fallen
's arrival on native shores gives notice that, first,
country
music has long ceased to be a strictly American phenomenon, and second, that Outback
may have a thing or two to teach sterile Nashville. Songs like
"Too Far to Fall"
and
"Still Holding On"
feature honest-to-God pedal steel and a jaunty
shuffle.
Auld
's voice cracks and breaks in the classic tradition of singers like
Kitty Wells
Loretta Lynn
. There's a great duet with
Dale Watson
on
"Jackson"
and a good take on
Fred Eaglesmith
's
"Alcohol and Pills."
Drummer
Doug Gallacher
pushes a number of these songs into high gear with a steady backbeat, while
Michel Rose
lays down some lovely dobro and steel.
has written ten good songs, embracing every style from classic
to
Western swing
. Delivered with confidence and style,
is an excellent debut. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr.