Ashley Jordan
Ashley Jordan is proving that you don’t have to be from, or live in Nashville to write and release great country music. The Boston native has racked up an impressive amount of awards and accolades in her career, including a Grammy nomination. She began by busking on the sidewalks around Harvard when she was a teenager, and by the time she was 16 she had released her first LP and hit the road. Four albums later, she’s a regular at the best clubs in New England, as well as Nashville a few times a year and has shared the stage with some of the bigger names in music. This release, “Am I Gonna Survive,” is her latest single that drops on March 10, 2023. We got a sneak peak - here’s our review.
It’s a solemn intro with an ethereal patch, voice over, and ominous piano line in C# minor. Like many of her tracks, the lyrics start with a compelling first line - “did that just happen.” Her vocal delivery is soft but assured, and I love the slight gospel voicings in the piano. With the pre-chorus, there’s a shift in tonality as the melody is now based around G# minor - clever trick. Lyrically, she takes us deeper into the pain with a question to her father about living with the pain forever - the higher melody and compelling delivery make a great combination to really sell the line.
With the chorus, the full band comes in the progression holds to the G# minor, and a great 1-, 6, 3, 5 progression. Love how she builds the melody off the 2, that’s unexpected. In addition to her vocals, the bass and kick are a stand-out - definitely locked in tight with great tones, and the lap steel adds that perfect effect. Love that turn around to get out of the chorus - that’s unexpected and nice.
Second verse keeps the full band in to help build the intensity. It’s also aided by her broadened delivery that hits a couple of punches, but also pulls back to accentuate the pain and tenderness of the lyrics. Second pre-chorus and chorus come right back into full effect. The lyrics and vocal delivery continue their powerful presence, and I sense that this will be a relatable song to many woman. The bridge expands upon the pain mentioned in the lyrics and is a solid musical compliment.
Standard drop-out trick on the final Pre Chorus, but I’m not complaining, it really works well. At this point, the final chorus is a sing-a-long, and she finishes it off with a nice vocalization and fade out on the word “forever.” Great track, Ashley! Another solid vocal performance to your already impressive catalog of work.
Make sure you scroll down to check out her socials (like her cover of the Dropkick Murphys) and other tracks. “Gone Girl” has to be my favorite. The mandolin and lap steel tones are perfect and the lyrics are heartbreaking. Her voice is peak form on the choruses - it’s rare to hear tone control that strong. “New England Tears” is absolutely gut-wrenching. As soon as you hear the lyrics, you’ll get it. Unfortunately, it’s still too relevant in our society but we need songs like this, for sure.