If It's Too Loud...

Nashville's Shelly Fairchild is an admirer and friend of the Lynn family, so she was deeply affected by Loretta Lynn's passing last year. She was on her way to Blackbird Studios when she received a text that Lynn passed away. As a tribute to the fallen legend, she asked Shamir to join her on a cover of "Fist City." The two recorded a perfect tribute, and it's a spot on cover with just a little bit of updating. If it was recorded to any other reason, it would be an absolute blast of a cover, which just shows that Fairchild and Shamir perfectly captured the spirit of the original. Shamir says of Loretta Lynn and the cover of "Fist City": "The music of Loretta Lynn has always been a source of comfort.  My love of country first began when I got my first radio when I was 9 years old. Every Sunday morning my local country station would play classic country and oldies, of course Loretta's music was frequently played. The cherry on top of it all was bei...

Photo by Ebru Yildiz There are three things I have a nearly undying love for: 1. Cover songs 2. Jessica Lea Mayfield 3. Loretta Lynn Luckily for me, all three have been combined as Jessica Lea Mayfield has recorded a version of Loretta Lynn's Christmas classic "To Heck With Ole Santa Claus." Before listening, I assumed that this would be a return to Mayfield's original, more country inspired sound, but I was wrong. In covering this country Christmas classic, Mayfield doubles down on her current more dream pop sound. The result is this haunting take on Lynn's upbeat novelty song, that is both more disturbing and more amusing. You can watch the video for Jessica Lea Mayfield's version of "To Heck With Ole Santa Claus" below. The song is part of this year's Amazon Indie for the Holidays playlist which also includes Charly Bliss, Best Coast, Dean & Britta, and more. For more on Jessica Lea Mayfield, check out her website .

Another crazy busy week, so another two parter for you all. Co-Album of the Week : Artist : Nada Surf Album : You Know Who You Are Quick Description : Latest album from the veteran rock act. Why You Should Listen : Nada Surf has been perpetually underrated for decades now. Overall Thoughts : You might still only know them via "Popular," which is fine. The issue with that is you've missed out on a ton of great music, including their really amazing album from about a decade ago, The Weight is a Gift . This album? It's absolutely their best since then, maybe even better musically, and just one of the most solid recent listens in a while. In an era where power pop isn't really getting its due, it's interesting to listen to this and really hear a band that's basically mastered what they do. From top to bottom, this is a superlative album and I can't wait to spend more time with it. It's so good, guys. So good. Recommendation : A must lis...