Ashley McBryde is one of Country Music’s newest stars and the American born artist from Walden, Arkansas has already drawn nominations for tracks on her soon to be released second album, Never Will, which Martha Divine is taken from.

At 36, it might seem a little longer in the tooth than many of her counterparts to be releasing only her second album, but many would say the best country artists need experience to really shine through, and that is true, but Ashley McBryde was certainly a presence in the industry for many years prior to her album releases. 

If I’m honest, I had a little chuckle with the lyrics to this song. I do hope they’re meant as tongue in cheek, or a work of fiction, otherwise Ashley McBryde might find herself in a lot of trouble! The story of the song essentially tells us about Martha who is having an affair with Ashley McBryde’s father and as a result, Ashley wants to kill her! The very first line especially made me smile, “I’ve got this feeling and I got this shovel”, and the rest of the lyrics follows this vain too! The song itself starts with a drum beat not often heard in country music, but as soon as the vocals come in, you know you’re in for a country classic. The chorus takes the feel to another level and we have some wonderful harmonies, a heavily powered distorted guitar that plays some big riffs that sit alongside a very catchy melody. The verse continues with staccato lyrics and breaks that let the words be heard clearly. The way the music works takes a little of the humour out of the lyrics if they are read on their own, the music and aggression in the guitars makes this a serious song, but if you watch the video the humour comes back. 

The instrumentation in Martha Divine and the individual instrument melodies aren’t as country as many songs that are out at the moment, and perhaps with a different vocal and melody the feel of the whole track could be transported to a rock song. Having said that the precision of the Ashley McBryde, the distinctive harmonies and general lyrical feel put this well within the country music genre and that combination is an absolute winner and I love it. 

 Country 

Author: Phil Arnold

Phil Arnold is a musician, producer and music reviewer from Devon, in the South West of England. Whilst not writing music reviews, Phil also writes and records under the name of Ugbrooke.