Maren Morris - Humble Quest (March 25, 2022) Album • Page 2

Obviously gonna wait for the album, but GIRL was a huge step down from Hero and so far it feels to me like another fall

 

Idk, I think this is pretty clearly a return to form. Not sure what you're missing.

 

Wild this is out Friday, feels like the most under-the-radar release she's ever had

 

I adore this album. Pretty easily her most emotionally candid record, and so much more interesting in every way than GIRL.

 

Last song on this album made me cry. Jesus.

 

@Craig Manning this does feel like a very.... you album, haha. But yeah, on one listen this is immediately my least favorite album from her, would be shocked if that changes. It's lyrically strong, but musically it feels so one-note across the way, so much so that Circles Around This Town sticks out like a sore thumb from the rest. Not many interesting arrangements or melodies throughout, just not catching my ear much. Nothing bad, but nothing great... on first listen, maybe that'll change.

 

I think it's pretty handily her best album from a lyrical perspective. I know that doesn't matter to you as much as it does to me, but it's definitely something I've latched onto right away. These love songs are so much more unique than the ones on GIRL (save "The Bones," which is still one of her best songs), and we get back some of her sense of humor as a lyricist, which I think was almost completely gone on the last album. And then the big emotional punches on this record ("Background Music," "What Would This World Do") just really hit in a way that only her non-album tracks ("Dear Hate" and "Better Than We Found It") have really done for me in the past.

Musically, I just have to disagree with you. I think there's more going on instrumentally than on her past records, which could sometimes blur into this big poppy soup. Not to speak ill of Busbee at all, who I think did a great job gearing her sound in a more mainstream direction, and is a big part of the reason she had so much crossover potential; RIP. There's a lot of cool texture going on in the drums, keys, bass, and guitar on songs like "Tall Guys," and I love that we get some more overt country arrangements on stuff like "Detour" and "I Can't Love You Anymore."

Idk, I'd recommend giving it a few more tries? I know you came into this one with a not-so-positive impression, so maybe that affected your first listen.

 

I hear what you are saying, I do, and to clarify I know that the instruments here are very technically good, best sounding musicians she has had for sure. What I was getting at more is that the song structures are very straightforward, the melodies all feel like things I've heard many times before, I really love when she does things that make me go WOW musically, and I didn't really find any of that here. That's the kind of stuff I like the most on GIRL, "Make Out With Me" being the biggest standout for me.

But anyway, I'll definitely keep listening and I am certain more will grow on me, I guess I was just hoping for more diversity across the album and first listen just felt like a lot of nice little ballads

 

Interesting that you should say that, since my issue with GIRL was always that it was a little bit too samey.

 

Just to be clear, I also didn't really like GIRL haha. Maybe half the songs. Hero is the one for me, by far

 

oh this is so great

 

This live performance (the song's debut, I think) is really something. Worth a watch.

 

the production is perfect, crisper and subtler than i expected from kurstin

 

"detour"....... w o w

 

imo in his heart steve objects to the lack of bops

 

I do like me some bops

 

Only about halfway through but I think I'm gonna spend a lot of time with this one

 

Nice review, 8.0 (though I vehemently disagree with the categorization of "Nervous" and "Good Friends" as "filler"; if there's a weak point for me here, it's 100 percent "I Can't Love You Anymore").

Maren Morris: Humble Quest

 

I enjoyed this much more than GIRL on first listen and will definitely be going back to it, but man would I like her to try and make a true follow up to Hero at some point. Singles were such a feint.

 

Kind of curious what you mean by this, both the “true follow up” bit and the singles being a “feint.” Care to expound?

 

I like the the country songs, not so much the more crossover ones

 

Sure. I think the singles (especially the first and third) felt more like extensions of Hero than GIRL. Minus “Tall Guys” I don’t feel that way about the rest of the record.