My Piece Of Land 2:10

Amanda Shires, 'The Way It Dimmed'

from My Piece Of Land

Two minutes and 11 seconds. That's how long it takes Amanda Shires to look back through her past and explore all the memories, both good and bad, she has of a former lover. Couldn't we all spend hours and hours talking about the mistakes we've made and the loves we've lost? Not Shires. Her songwriting is just that concise; with careful and considered language choices, she's able to create incredibly vivid images that resonate with anyone listening — like "A parade of images I never finished sorting through / Your hands laced in my belt loops," or "Your fingerprints are still burned into my skin." "The Way It Dimmed," the opening track on Shires' new release, My Piece Of Land, is undeniably catchy, thanks in part to husband Jason Isbell's surfy guitar and the incessant rhythms provided by Paul Slivka (bass) and Paul Griffith (drums). While Shires' magnificent fiddle playing is sadly not front-and-center here, this song does give us a chance to fall in love with her voice and the stories she shares with it.

—Elena See, Folk Alley