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Feb 14, 2019Having rediscovered his split-lipped humour, and working with simple, yet propulsive arrangements, this is a league leader back in game shape. ... It's a master class in country songwriting, a series of lessons about how to work the expected tropes into what feel like as-yet-undiscovered shapes.
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MojoFeb 19, 2019Fine follow-up [to 2016's Lovers & Leavers] ... has a wider range of emotions and some new classics. [Apr 2019, p.91]
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Feb 19, 2019Like the work of another artist who recently envisioned a velvet Elvis, it’s songwriting that doesn’t pander to mainstream country, alt-country, so-called Americana, indie-folk, or what-have you. It just tells its story, indelibly.
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Feb 14, 2019His latest record, What It Is will be his sixth and reveals Carll's methodical craftsmanship at creating songs that warily address the modern world. On the 12 self-penned and co-written songs here, Carll doesn't take stands as much as wonder about what the hell is going on.
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Feb 14, 2019Hayes Carll has made some great records. This is his best one.
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Mar 22, 2019Hayes Carll may forever swing between his impulses, but he's come to fully embrace What It Is.
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Feb 15, 2019Some regular guys craft occasional masterpieces, but Hayes Carll more often is the guy who delivers a good, solid, and enjoyable piece of work and then moves on, and that's what he's given his fans on What It Is. Like the cheeseburger that regular guy ordered at the bar, it may not be fancy, but it sure leaves you satisfied.
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Feb 14, 2019For anyone expecting a stark left-turn from the songwriter, What It Is will be a let-down. But the record’s greatest strength is also what makes it predictable: as Carll settles into the warm consistency and careful craft of middle-career, he’s less interested in proving who he is than in refining what he does best.
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Feb 14, 2019“If I May Be So Bold” and “I Will Stay” are sweet songs about determination and devotion, but they lack a certain, well, je ne sais quoi. Carll’s sharpest instincts don’t show here, so it sounds like he’s writing about self-reflection without doing much self-reflecting, solving equations without showing the math.