2022 seems to be the year of discovery when it comes to new UK Country artists and Preston D Barnes is another new name to hit the scene this year and adds to a long line of UK male artists that are making waves in the scene. He has a brand new single out on September 16th, lets take a look.
So "Castles on Quicksand" will be Preston's 4th single release and having signed for County Indie label "Sonic Boom" we can expect more to come.
Upon hitting the play button, I would advise turning down the sound on your listening device a little, as your ears are hit by a hard hitting drum fill intro and a wall of low growling overdriven electric guitars!
Once the eardrums got over the "sonic boom", (little joke there!), the track settles down a touch and Preston is into his stride. Having spent 20 years in music and a spell in the Army, its clear that Preston knows his way around a heavy pack and a microphone.
Preston's vocals have a lovely tone with some good grit and he tells the story of the song in an easy to follow style. The song having been written by trio of heavyweight writers, Paul Bliss (The Hollies, Sheena Easton, etc) Steve Kipner ( The Script, James Arthur, etc) & Peter Beckett (Kenny Rogers, Janet Jackson, etc) has a strong melody throughout and Preston does a great job, how much input he had on the arrangement or production, I can't say, as I simply don't know.
The track is a Country-Rock track, its heavy on drums and many layers of electric guitars and its got that "Honky Tonk" feel about it. Having been to Nashville and having hung out in the bars on Broadway for my sins, this song could be playing in any one of them. There are some lovely BV's and harmonies in the choruses and for the "air guitarists" amongst you out there, there's a nice little solo too.
Now If you are a regular visitor to our music reviews here, you will know that I often mention that Country Music is a very broad church, with many sub-genres and styles. Some folks like only certain traditional styles and consider any other sound "not country at all". Well where does "Castles on Quicksand" fit in? Well, I feel its right bang down the Country-Rock middle. Its definitely not Pop-Country and its not awash with Banjos either, so it should have a very broad appeal to most Country fans.
What do we think? We think its fab.
Castles on Quicksand - Preston D. Barnes is out on September 16th on all platforms.
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