Pageant Material

At 26, Musgraves has kept her wonder, honed her focus and remained true to her core.

Her music is constructing itself before our ears, filling itself out with complexity, regardless of how we want to judge it. It’s another way the album seems to be reacting to the cultural moment and standing outside of it, on its own two feet.

On her excellent second album, she brings us the whole block.

This is an even better album than her last, with more consistency and variety.

[Pageant Material] sounds effortless and fully formed from first note to last.

Kacey’s dulcet voice and talent for melody are still worthy of great respect--just about every tune connects.

Some tracks, like “Fine” and “Somebody To Love,” drag a bit, bringing the already slightly slow record down a notch. Still, tracks like the aforementioned “Biscuits” and weed-infused opener “High Time” more than make up the difference, making Pageant Material a must listen for anyone who’s a little bit country, a little bit rock ’n’ roll, and just a little bit crazy.

Listeners with open minds are strongly recommended to give Pageant Material a try. It’s brimming with wit and wisdom, and it really should have featured on more end-of-year lists.

It's a strange and forgiving album, less toothsome than the ones that preceded it, but Musgraves' resistance makes this album important, even when it's imperfect.

Every pretty melody, every sweet-tart lyric, every vocal and instrumental flourish... they definitely earn her--to borrow a title-song reference--a 4.0.

Smart, funny, empathetic and wise, Musgraves is one of the best in the business right now--even when it seems she might be treading water.

With her slight but sweet voice, Musgraves has a way with a sing-songy chorus, many of which she co-writes with her frequent collaborators and fellow hitmakers Shane McAnally, Brandy Clark, and Luke Laird.

Her new album is a successful repetition of the formula: sweet, crisp country licks with witty twists of live-and-let-live philosophy.

Musgraves' willingness to address a life built on knotty contradictions give her songs resonance far beyond Golden's borders. [Jul 2015, p.82]

Ahe stumbles when she gets lighter, particularly on "Family Is Family," where it seems like she can't wait to be rid of those leeches--but it's hardly enough to prevent the album from being a rich, enchanting collection of stories, confessions, and the occasional joke.

Eschewing Top 40 twang's shellacked production as well as God-and-guns patriotism, she adopted a gritty, unfettered small-band approach. Pageant Material maintains those standards, but spruced-up production and the "aw shucks" wonderment of her new reality.