Girl at the Rock Shows

I promised to get better at writing album reviews, but I fear I have gotten worse. Honestly, life keeps on lifeing me, and I feel like when I start to get comfortable with everything, something else happens that knocks me down. I was looking at it pessimistically up until today. What changed? I realized that, instead of falling back on my trusty old soundtracks, maybe checking out something new and finding new music to help me through all of these curve balls will help me get through things a bit faster so, here I am– dealing with another curve ball from life but hoping that checking out ‘Rhinestones’ from Erin Lunsford can help me pick myself back up a bit quicker.

Personally, I’ve never wanted the name “Diane.” It’s not as interesting as my name, but within the first few lines of “Name So Pretty,” I started to question if I have been fooling myself all these years. This is a stunner of an opening track for this album. It’s soft and smooth, but it instantly shows you that Erin Lunsford has a way with words and is a truly iconic songwriter. The song starts with words of jealousy about the name “Diane,” but as it moves on, you realize that “Diane” isn’t really as pretty as it sounds. No offense to any Diane’s out there, or anything like that, but the cleverness of this song instantly struck a chord with not only my ears, but also my heart.

The title track, “Rhinestones,” is the second track on this album. This song seems to replace the more poppy nature of “Name So Pretty” with something a bit more country-inspired. Don’t get me wrong, this song is still obnoxiously catchy in a pop sense, but I love that there’s just a bit more emotion that comes through loud and clear in this song. Another thing I love, again, is the words. The story behind this song is simple enough to pick up on and is a tale as old as time, but there’s such a genius word choice throughout this song that makes the words feel elegant and glamorous while keeping them painfully relatable.

The amount of pain and emotion that came over me as “Call Me If You Need Me” took over my speakers was immense, to put it lightly. We all have those friends that we moved away from, whether physically or mentally. Whether it was on purpose or not, it’s something that, on those late and lonely nights, my head often drifts off to. Just today, I texted a good friend from high school. I thought we were going to be meeting up in Chicago in September for a music festival, but life had a different plan for her, so it’s not happening anymore. This song reminded me of her and that, although we may not live in the same state (or even country at times since she is in the military), I would drop anything and everything when her name comes up on my phone. Again, this song emphasizes how real Erin Lunsford is and how relatable every single word she sings is.

There’s a softness throughout all of these songs thus far, but that softness really comes to fruition in “Think Of Daniel.” Erin’s voice takes a more airy approach to the words in this song, yet they don’t lose the power that is clearly a signature of this songstress. Much like “Call Me If You Need Me,” this song is about longing for something you don’t have anymore, but it’s not sad. It’s more encouraging and more daydream-invoking than anything else, making it a great calm-down kind of song that still keeps your brain thinking and keeps people from your past in the forefront of your mind.

From one of the sweetest songs to one that shows a more angsty side of Erin, I instantly fell head over heels for “I’m Gonna Haunt You.” Again, like most of Erin’s songs, this one tells the story as old as time, but the spice that Erin sprinkles over this song and the way she matches those angsty words with a sweet melody is show-stopping, to say the least. I know I should have a lot more to say about this song, what with it being an instant favorite, but, truthfully, “I’m Gonna Haunt You” speaks for itself.

It’s back to a more straight-up country sound when it comes to “Marigold.” I know I keep saying things that I love about Erin, but why stop now? I’m not a country girl. I’m even less of a pop country girl, which is exactly how I would classify most of these songs, yet Erin has me sold, and songs like this one are why. It’s catchy, but that could be said for any pop country song. Erin takes it a step deeper and makes you fall in love with her voice, her tone, her music, and her words. I wish I could tell you how or why I felt so much love and such a deep connection to Erin for this song in particular, but the words escape me because, at the end of the song, I realized it’s not something that can be put into words. It’s just something that I felt, and it added something super special to this song, which had me listening to it a few times before moving on to “Last I Heard.”

The fiddle that kicks off “Last I Heard” feels a bit more abrasive than anything else I had heard on this album, but don’t let that fool you. Erin is still up to her normal game with winning over your heart one word at a time, but it comes with just a subtle darkness that I feel like hasn’t existed in previous songs. The beat is a bit more severe but in a super cool way. Honestly, there’s this perfect amount of electronic reverb on the instrumentation throughout this song that screams arena-ready to me. I could see an epic stage show in my mind. A gorgeous bedazzled dress glistening in the spotlights of a giant stadium with fans screaming and pleading to meet their idol– Erin Lunsford. Okay, am I going too far here? Maybe, but truly, this is the song that is ready to be front and center during a sold-out arena show, which is surely in Erin’s future at some point.

“Delphia’s Sunrise” may only be 58 seconds long, but it’s 58 seconds of bliss that should not be skipped over, and it leads into “Watch Out For Deer” so very perfectly because it feels like it’s setting up a scene of a movie and the ninth song is that movie. The movie depicts a gorgeous woman driving down winding country roads in the dark, all by herself. She’s crying, but not tears of sadness, tears of ambition and love. Tears of being exhausted but not being able to slow down. Tears of fear, but not being able to let the fear win. This is a motivational speech in the form of a gorgeous song, and that’s something we all need a little bit more of. I could be way off here also, as with every song, the words are open for interpretation. What does this song make you think of in your mind?

“Crossing Belvidere” continues the traveling theme laid out in “Watch Out For Deer” but takes a slight turn toward something a bit more whimsical in the instrumentation, while the vocals seem to shift a bit more maturely. Don’t get me wrong, this song is clearly and firmly that of Erin Lunsford, but there is just something a bit more restrained about it while also having a bit more of a playful background. It’s another stunning song that I feel like was over too soon because, before I really even noticed it, the album had moved on to “Strawberries,” which instantly caught my ear. Like a superbly ripened strawberry, this song is juicy and full of emotion and talent. At this point in the album, I feel like I’m just repeating myself, but truly, “Strawberries” is just another standard Erin Lunsford song, full of all things beautiful and one that will definitely get you hooked on first listen.

Although “Flood Watch” fades this album out on a super calm and peaceful note, Erin doesn’t let you go without one more blast of power and beauty. Honestly, I think I would have loved to have gotten a bit more of an upbeat jam for the final song, but I also loved the air of mystery and emotion that this final song left me in, and, at this point in listening to ‘Rhinestones’, I knew with certainty that I was just going to turn around and start this journey all over again.

Tl;dr – ‘Rhinestones’ by Erin Lunsford is not made for a punk and metal-loving music fan like me, but it sold me instantly so don’t let the pop-country facade of this album scare you away. It’s relatable, raw, and honest, but also perfectly polished and catchy all at the same time. This album will make you feel things you may not be prepared for, so buckle up, enjoy the ride, and let Erin take you through memories and daydreams.

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