Review Summary: Just writing songs.
For an artist caught awash in the touring cycle, writing music can be as much of a release as a good holiday. For Mr. Godwin, the last five years have been a roller coaster of sorts. Imagine, just as you begin to hit a stride—selling tales of life through clearly conveyed country hits tailor made for larger arenas a pandemic hits, crippling a run towards stardom or in the very least, a relevant adage to a larger stage. It was a non-unique issue that hit writers and musicians globally. Charles is not
unique—but that is what gave life to
How the Mighty Fall and more recently,
Family Ties. These records are country barn burners; perfect for the arena and open air.
Lonely Mountain Town however feels largely more intimate, melancholic and better set to a dimly lit stage. Charles Wesley Godwin’s path to success hasn’t been as smooth sailing as his songwriting would suggest.
That in itself is beautiful. All that momentum and a clear path to write bigger and better songs; inspiration do doubt from opening for heavy hitting acts like Luke Combs, Charles Godwin’s newest EP is a fresh take in planting B-sides in place of a full-length. Introspection runs rampant, repelling the temptation to write balls to the wall country. The Ep’s titular track is but one example; a stripped back acoustic ode to loss and memory. The song’s hook is entrenched in the melancholia mentioned above. “It’s The Little Things” motif is a bit more on the nose, but a welcomed simplicity in the face of what could have been completely vague metaphoric climes.
Further cuts contained within this little EP continues to expand on Charles Wesley Godwin’s introspective soundscapes and yet, it’s the features that help expand this simple sound. “Dead To Rights” features hitter ERNEST while Scott Avett lends his talents to closer, “Hammer Down” showering both grandeur and even catharsis in place of booming country.
Lonely Mountain Town is lush with minimalism, sentiment and broader brush strokes of West Virginia. Not at all a bead effort considering this package is succinct enough to play under thirty minutes.
