Maren Morris is one of many up-and-coming female country singer-songwriters trying her hand at success in Nashville, but one of the few actually getting the success she deserves. She's written songs such as Kelly Clarkson's "Second Wind", and the music video for her debut single, "My Church", has over 2 million views on Youtube. Her first EP to come out on major outlets such as iTunes gives a taste of what's hopefully to come. There are several standout tracks, with the entire EP being written by well-known songwriters in addition to Morris herself.
Track by track review:
Album Rating: 9 out of 10
- My Church - One of the two Busbee co-writes on this EP, as well as her debut single, "My Church" pays homage to some of the most famous parts of country music — legends such as Cash, and religion. It's cleverly done, with the clapping in the background of the song acting as a religious motif. It's also a great connection to make, because both music and religion have the power to bring people together. 9/10
- 80’s Mercedes - This track, also co-written by Busbee, is the most poppy song on the collection, but shows Morris's skill at writing pop songs as opposed to lack thereof. The background instrumentation is addicting, and the song itself is another personality-defining song for her, with the lyrics "I'm a 90s baby/In my 80s Mercedes". 9/10
- Drunk Girls Don’t Cry - This track is certainly the one that's going to turn the most heads, as well as the best on the EP. It's similar in instrumentation to another demo that was briefly up on her Soundcloud account, "Hard Liquor and Soft Rock". It highlights the rock side of Morris's music, with the first two songs highlighting her country and pop sides, but also brings out the country theme of warning a girl against a cheater. The controversy is in the swearing, which does fit with the general theme of being 100% done with both the boy and girl in the song. 10/10
- I Wish I Was - "I Wish I Was" shows a more personal side of Morris's songwriting. It was a good song to include on the EP, but I'm not sure if she's as good at writing sad or ballad-type songs as she is at writing upbeat songs. It's clear that the song comes from a place of emotion, but it doesn't get there as much as it seems like it could. (Maybe that's because it's written with two other songwriters.) She definitely has talent at writing this kind of song, but there is room for improvement. However, "My Church" is personal and upbeat, as was "Second Wind" to an extent, so personal songs don't have to be ballads. 8/10
- Company You Keep - The final track is a cute track to close the EP with, ending it with a positive message. It's also a very country message — valuing friends over money or locations. 9/10
Album Rating: 9 out of 10
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