by Debra Au
Daily Lobo
Country music isn't exactly my forte.
I cringed last summer when my bosses set the office radio to one of those horrible music FM dials. I've even programmed my TV to skip over CMT when I surf though my beloved free cable and HBO stations UNM so graciously provides in my overpriced dorm room. And I cried when I found out the great Tuesday night pastime of watching "American Idol" was bastardized into a spin-off - "Nashville Star."
So what could possibly have me as of late listening to music that generally would be classified as country? It's a rare but incurable disease known as TALS: Thelma and Louise Syndrome. There's just something about taking long drives with your best friend through the desert that suddenly makes the genre of country music mildly appealing.
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I recently discovered the country artist Shooter Jennings. He is the son of the late country star Waylon Jennings, who is often characterized as the first rebel of country music.
Apparently, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. With a rugged beard, shoulder-length hair and dark tinted aviator sunglasses, Shooter isn't exactly the poster child for mainstream pop country Ö la the formulized style of Tim McGraw or Faith Hill.
His album, Electric Rodeo, is sure to change the scene of the once sleepy country bumpkin sounds for which country music is notorious.
Electric Radio is an eclectic mix of rock and country, with sounds ranging from a type of modern Lynyrd Skynyrd to a throwback to his father's soulful guitar twangs. Perhaps the most notable aspects of the younger Jennings are his rough lyrics and raspy vocals.
Jennings holds nothing back in his songs, singing of everything from life on the road to disenchantment of life as he croons, "Your heroes turn out to be assholes/ and the light that you're chasing in the tunnel is a train" in "The Song is Still Slipping Away."
So for all those out there who think country is nothing more than a guy sappily plucking away on his guitar because his girlfriend broke up with him, obviously Shooter Jennings has never come across your airwaves.
He appeals to those wanting more edgy country and those who want an update on traditional sounds. It's a tough line to straddle, but Jennings manages to stand tall.
While I'm a long way from owning a pickup truck or buying clothes at Western Warehouse, if there were more artists like Shooter Jennings out there, maybe, just maybe, I'd consider having a country station on my radio preset. Let's not go overboard.
