“This hurt I’m feeling is the damndest thing,” sings Charles Wesley Godwin on the title track here—and that reflection seems to run through the whole of Lonely Mountain Town like a golden thread.
Although it’s nearly all acoustic, the warm contentment of “It’s The Little Things” really benefits from the beat—a celebration of finding joy in the ordinary.
And ordinary is what categorizes Lonely Mountain Town. Ernest guests on “Dead to Rights”, and the love song is a cut above.
To be honest, all of this is. “It’s Her Move” finds him in his rig, looking back on all the women who led him here, with a desire to settle. But the troubadour was never made to settle down—was he?
Much less raucous than the debut, but nonetheless, there’s something so welcoming about these songs—something that grips you. “I don’t think about her too much,” he sings on “Then I’m Gone”, but who’s fooled? No one.
Whoever she was, she did a number on him. “She Don’t Love Me Anyway” is almost as fragile as an Elliott Smith tune, and you can feel his heartbreak.
Scott Avett guests on the last track, and they all find solace in the Lord. For Godwin, it’s a chance to work with one of his musical heroes, and it shows. Whether you’re religious or not, the warmth of “Hammer Down” shines through.
As it does throughout the EP. And if this is the direction his career is headed, then that’s just fine.
Rating: 8/10
