I’d heard Ashton’s singles in the country playlists I put on when I’m looking for new releases and I loved her voice. I was excited to sit down with her album, Made From The Dirt, and hear what she had to say. She has writing credits for every song on the album after all.

The writing is somewhat uneven and I can’t figure out why. I don’t think it’s something I can lay wholly on her because there are co-writers on every song and that includes some well known names like Lori McKenna. But the track that she wrote with Ashton, “Angels Smoke Cigarettes”, is maybe my least favorite on the album and it has the lowest play count on YouTube Music. I get why. It’s beautiful and dreamy but it just doesn’t pull me in or drive me forward and unlike several of the other songs that make up the majority of the album it did not have a hook that grabbed me.

Speaking of hooks, Called Crazy has a great one,

“I never been called crazy by a man who didn’t come back for more.”

The entire song is a menacing promise of a good time you’ll probably regret later.

A lot of the first three-quarters of the album is hurt by what I would describe as muddy production – vocals and instruments all seem to be mixed into the same sonic space with very little separation. On some tracks this means that I am straining somewhat to find Ashton’s powerful voice in the mess.

So the first surprise was that I felt pretty disappointed by this point in the album. With three tracks left I was ready to say “Not great, I wouldn’t skip most of these on a playlist or Pandora station but they’re not going in my regular rotation either.” which is when I got surprised a second time.

“Drive You Out Of My Mind” is the most played track from the album and it deserves the attention. There’s a driving drumbeat propelling the song forward and Ashton’s vocals are given the appropriate amount of space in the mix to stand out. For the first time since I started listening I found my head bobbing and my chair rocking along . It only peaked at 42 on Billboard Country Airplay chart which I put down to strong competition rather than any fault with the song. Could it have been a number 1 hit? I don’t know but I think it deserved to go higher.

My praise for “‘Til The Lights Go out” is similar but Ashton’s voice is even more dynamic here and soars over the chorus before settling back down into the verses as she details her irrepressible urge to create and share her music. The chorus is especially poignant for anyone from a small town that has goals for making it big.

Maybe I’m made of big dreams in small towns
Always chasing who I wanna be and who I am right now
I can’t trade a star for a stone, wish for a bone
When I was born for taking bows
Make me or break me, I’m gonna run it down
‘Til the lights go out

The final track though is where I think Ashton really comes into her full power. The flexibility and range of her voice is on full display, contrasting with a lot of the previous tracks. While I was listening to “The Straw” I wrote the note, “It sounds like she can’t open her mouth all the way???” Well “Juanita” completely banished any lingering remnants of that notion. In addition to the soulful way she sings on most of the album on this track she achieves ethereal nearly angelic vocals which are perfectly appropriate for a song written about and dedicated to her beloved grandmother. She describes performing this track as “a breath of fresh air.”

Others have characterized this album as having “grit”. I don’t agree, I think that it’s solidly country with some country-pop influences. Most of the album is competent enough but ultimately not to my tastes. The last quarter of the album though is three rock solid songs that are better than their compatriots and I was thrilled to be surprised by them. I’m looking forward to whatever comes next from Kassi Ashton.