Trent Willmon – Self-Titled

This unaffected, smart, honky-tonking West Texan is the latest in a new generation of country singers who’ve got the right stuff to appeal to “both sides” of the far-from-ironclad “mainstream country vs. alt-country” divide. Son of a conservative cattle-ranching dad and a liberal Houston mom who raised him on literature, he’s arrived at a songwriting style that reflects a bit of both.

Willmon’s observant lyrics to generally co-written songs about the likes of “Dixie Rose Deluxe’s Honky Tonk, Feed Store, Gun Shop, Used Car, Beer, Bait BBQ, Barber Shop Laundromat” (that’s just one title) dominates his debut disc. It’s not a surprise that the first of his talents noticed in Nashville was the writing.

The songs range from an uptempo number on the appeal of cans or bottles of brew (“Willie smokes pot, but I’m a beer man”) to a touching, original and apparently autobiographical ballad about seeing his young daughter (who’s obviously living in custody elsewhere) only on fleeting visits at a Holiday Inn. There’s storytelling, and a sense of musical history.

For those now thinking, “Well and good, but the sound must be dripping with Nashville cheese,” I’d suggest a listen, because it’s not. Tunes are sometimes driven by fiddle, sometimes by steel, and there’s some fine acoustic and electric guitar to be heard, as well as a bit of vocal backing from Alison Krauss — all behind Willmon’s own smooth and rangy, very Texas baritone.

In one self-penned number, “Medina Daydreaming”, Willmon looks back at the details of small-town life from the 28th floor. This is music that should work for country fans from both locations.