Do you get antsy and excited to listen to your new records?

I have a lot of albums that I love, but there are only a few of them that I am truly anxious to hear for the first time.

I like everything about Sturgill Simpson and I was on pins and needles to finally spin this record.

This is a Sturgill Simpson record, but it is not a country record. Well, it is not specially a country record. Sound & Fury has country flavor that mainly comes from the unmistakable and unavoidable twang in Sturgill’s voice. But, that twang has been drenched in 80s synth among other sounds.

The style of new wave synthy 80s-ness that fills in the gaps of this album is very, very similar to Shooter Jennings’ Countach (For Giorgio). It is as if the new wave sound was born out of country music rather than having its roots in punk and top 40.

Parts of Sound & Fury remind me of Elvis’ funky post ’68 Comeback Special era with an undercurrent of big soulful Vegas-style jams rising to the top on occasion.

Other times this record ventures into a dreamy Pink Floyd-esque territory.

All of those parts are added together and run through a filter of fuzzy and buzzy garage rock to form an incredible and almost new type of rock n roll.

Sound & Fury is a work of art with a specific flow; it all goes together as a whole. I had the same thought about the new Slipknot record, but this album is less subtle about the fact that it is meant to be consumed as an entire piece and not in parts.

I know that it has a Netflix anime that goes along with it, but the album is perfectly enjoyable without it.

This may just be the best record of 2019. I am writing this on October 4, 2019, and I’m predicting that Sturgill will win the Grammy for best rock album.

My favorite track: A Good Look