Abby Brown- Heart On Fire  (click on image to watch video)

 7 November 2019

Boulder native Abby Brown fulfills the promise of her last EP with her latest, Heart on Fire. Much like that 2018 release, the five-songs that make up the current effort continue down the same modern Americana, up-tempo folk path, keeping her powerful voice front and center.

The album is built around the emotional “Love Release Me,” a powerful plea that is covered again in a stripped-down version on the last track. The unplugged version manages to be just as earnest and twice as vulnerable. The title track is a strong contender, but the opening song, “Every Day Of My Life” is easily Brown’s finest hour. While not exactly raucous, the upbeat track is hard to ignore; lyrically the love song is simple, but the message is universal, and the delivery is spot on.   

The only real snag on this otherwise solid effort is “Sugar,” the one song here not written by Brown. The Maren Morris tune is not bad, it’s just not as strong as the others housed on Heart On Fire and the reworking is not that much different than the original, making the cover a little redundant.

There is an obvious nod to everyone from Emmy Lou Harris and Bonnie Raitt to Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks, great company to be influenced by. While these first two EPs and a solid start, a full length where Brown stretches her music to add even a little more rock (like those influences) would be a great next act.      

John B. Moore has been covering the seemingly disparate, but surprisingly complimentary genres of Americana and punk rock for the past 20 years.

Blurt/New Noise Magazine/InSite Atlanta/NeuFutur Magazine

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