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About a year after their stellar record Me Oh My, Asheville, NC band The Honeycutters have created a fresh batch of stunners with the follow-up On the Ropes. Lead by the heavy-hitting vocals of Amanda Anne Platt, the band continues to hone their strong country sound with just the right mix of fun and melancholy, nostalgia and currency. Where Me Oh My found them delving into slightly darker territory, On the Ropes is filled with bouncier tunes that material: drinking, heartache and hard living.
A criminally underrated band, The Honeycutters have arrangements that are rich with fiddle, mandolin, piano, steel guitar and more. Combined with Platt’s smoky harmonies, you may find yourself conjuring up some of your favorite country music from the 90’s. There’s an authenticity to their whole sound, and especially to Platt’s voice. She takes her time, her vocals flowing slow like a hot summer day. And she has a natural bit of attitude that comes through in subtle bits just enough to make her sound like a badass. Her voice has character, but it’s beautiful and multidimensional, wavering or belting out in all the right places.
Standouts on On the Ropes are the honky tonk toe-tappers like “Let’s Get Drunk”, and the ideal drinking songs like “Golden Child” and “The Only Eyes”. But the slow burning beauties hit the spot, too, like the stripped down “Barmaid’s Blues”, the heartbreaking “Ache” and the tear-jerker “Blue Besides”. Platt’s lyrics manage to capture the pitfalls of nostalgia and being stuck in the past, and the nuances of deep, dark loneliness. Her songs may make you want to throw a few back, but you’ll have a really pretty soundtrack for drowning your sorrows. And that’s what good country music is all about. It reminds you of something you know or you’ve been through. The best kind makes you feel what the singer feels.
The Honeycutters will leave you feeling refreshed and hopeful that people are still making real country music. Their sound is pure and genuine, and deserves more attention than most of what’s out there.
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