Melodically electrified and yet retaining a classical tone undeniably synonymous with American country music, the piano keys behind Hannah Ellis in the song “Someone Else’s Heartbreak” beg for us to come a little closer and indulge in the swing they’re supported by, and their charms only get greater as we listen on. In every track where you hear a harmony between Ellis and the instruments in her new album That Girl, the chills factor is absolutely off the charts, and it’s got nothing to do with the sublime production style through which the material is presented.
Although it’s obvious to me and a lot of other critics in the indie press that Ellis is someone who takes the mastering process as seriously as she does any part of her performance, I think there’s a lot more to be said about her lyrical presence in That Girl than there is the quality of the recording. She never withholds in her poetry nor how she’s putting it to us in “Wine Country,” “Plans,” “Still,” and “One of These Days,” and I don’t get the feeling she ever will. There’s too much she has to say, and she isn’t about to waste our time with the same filler we could hear anywhere around Nashville right now.
Hannah Ellis’ easy-going attitude throughout That Girl is captivating, but I think it has an especially big impact on how the audience is made to break down “Karma on the Rocks,” “Us,” and “Somebody Else.” Whether she’s getting heavy with harmony or letting the backdrop illustrate her passions in a way she never could on her own, such as in the title track and “Too Much & Not Enough,” she’s focused and sounding relaxed, which is half the battle in a debut LP.
Hooks are more subtle than they are the center of our attention in songs like “Home and a Hometown,” “Wine Country,” and the pulsating “Country Can,” and I think this was a smart move on the part of Ellis. As a songwriter, it’s easy to get ahead of yourself when ambition is as big as the melodies you’re recording, but this composer isn’t letting her creative whims get the best of her in That Girl. A lot of her peers should follow her lead, as I think it would be good for country music in general.
Country fans have a real treasure they should be celebrating in 2024, and it’s Hannah Ellis’ That Girl. This is a thirteen-track masterpiece of a full-length that could blow up its star creator in a big way this winter, and while it’s got a couple of rough edges on the instrumental end – especially in the likes of “Karma on the Rocks” and “Plans” – they’re part of what makes this feel like such a homegrown country classic in the making. Ellis is being herself, and it’s more than obvious that she’s met a creative breakthrough in this album that will bring a lot of critical attention to her brand.
Garth Thomas