What
an appropriate name for Stephanie Rose’s new release. The successor to her
debut EP Go Where the Wind Takes You is a six song EP entitled Sprout and
the plain-spoken brevity of the title is fitting for a sophomore effort
expanding Rose’s songwriting vision with the same understated artistry that
shapes her material. She starts off with the title song and, while the
songwriting keys on a much different image, you can’t help but hear this song
as a metaphor for her ballooning reputation as one of the most promising
performers and writers today. The arrangement is quite a kicker to me – who
would ever expect horns, but it punctuates the song really well. Rose puts some
effective dynamics into “Rusted Love”, alternating from a full throated rock
sweep into muted, yet simmering, passages, and she fills the lyric with a
strong presence. It’s quite a change from the first song, but entertained
and engaged me from the beginning.
She
really swept me up with the EP’s third song “Luxury”. It’s emblematic of her
growing talents; Rose places herself in the middle of a life in dire straits
yet finds redemption in the ties that sustain her subjects. It’s a song that
could risk melodrama and cliché alike; Rose avoids that, however, thanks to how
she grounds the song in so many telling details that flesh out the experience
for listeners. It has an elegiac, slightly rueful air, but I never feel like
the arrangement or lyric dragged me down emotionally. Instead, I finished this
song admiring both her characters and Rose’s own considerable talents. She
changes things up and goes in a much rootsier direction with the song “Old
Soul”. It doesn’t get much more basic than a fleet footed shuffle tempo and
acoustic guitars, but the song is a winner nonetheless. Much of the
responsibility for its merits comes from the casual fluency of the musical
performance and another engaging Rose vocal.
She
goes back to the familiar ground of the EP’s second song for “Crushed”, but
there’s a more even balance between her low key country influences and the rock
side of her character. The light touches of reverb on the six string during the
introduction give the song a slightly unsettled vibe she returns to later in
the song, but Rose builds much of the track’s success off the same
juxtaposition of dynamics that made “Rusted Love” so memorable. I think the
chorus for the last song “Same Old Same Old” is one of the album’s best moments
in this area and Rose, along with her fellow musicians, play the moment with
just the right amount of skill. It’s mid tempo, but there’s still enough hints
of a slow drag shuffle in the arrangement any listener will feel familiar with
the setting from the start. Rose does an excellent job mixing the signature
with the recognizable on Sprout and the
EP’s six songs show tremendous growth from a first EP that still ranks among
the best country releases in recent years.
Jason
Hillenburg
