Reviews

Despite Western Country’s title, it’s easy to the hear rock influences, as “Match” lights up by mashing banjo picking with power chords, and the celebratory, harmony-laced “Melody” easily crosses genre boundaries. But other songs, such as “Shotgun” and “Shine On,” suggest Cash may have been listening to honky-tonk tunes at the time he recorded this. Pauly co-wrote some of these 14 songs, and former Saga vocalist Michael Sadler provides backing vocals. The switcheroo from prog to country works, because when Cash sings, “I ain’t as country as I’d like to be,” you can actually believe the good ol’ boy. It’s a bold yet authentic statement for a progger — albeit one who in 2003 released Crash Down, a contemporary pop/rock record. Western Country is a breezy listen that was overlooked four years ago but deserves renewed attention. And it bodes well for The Record Label’s future.
www.goldminemag.com/blogs/cash-flow-progger-matt-cash-transitions-to-country