'World of Strangers' is Zoe Muth's third album, following on from 2011's 'Starlight Hotel'. Well, since then, Zoe has moved from Seattle and settled in Austin, Texas, and she is joined on this CD by some of Austin's most talented musicians.
'World of Strangers' is a ten track CD, with nine of the tracks being Zoe's originals, and one cover version, a rather excellent cover of Ronnie Lane's 'April Fool', which originated on the 'Rough Mix' album, way back in 1977, the album being a collaboration between Ronnie and Pete Townshend.
The majority of tracks here fall firmly within the country music genre, however, listen a little closer and you will find other elements, such as folk, creeping in. The opening track, 'Little Piece of History' comes across as a jaunty country ballad, with some excellent guitar and keys. Zoe's vocal really suits this song, with a laid back slightly husky delivery on this tale of leaving town: - “Go catch the river, it's runnin' out to the sea lined sands/ I've been adding up my daylight savings, and babe I've got a plan/ You and me, it's the story of the chrome hearts. These dreams and illusions are hard to tell apart/All the coffee and gasoline, all the miles in between/Sunrise and sunset, And all the towns we ain't seen yet/Where people seem to be getting by in spite of the rent.”
Whilst sentiments like this may mine a well worn seam, there is something in Zoe's delivery and the well-crafted lyrics that makes you listen again. Following on from this is 'Mama Needs A Margarita', a slower country type song, detailing the life of someone who is reflecting on the life she lost after having a child: - “Nothing to do, nowhere to go. Just me and the baby eating straight from the jar/ Half past eight, dad calls and says he has to work late/ But I heard the jukebox playing down at the bar...”
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It's not all ballads and slow songs though, tracks like 'Too Shiny' are straight up country rockers, this one dealing with the aftermath of a relationship split when the male half returns to town later to try to pick up where he left off: - “And now, you don't have to come back to impress me/ This whole world is your diamond, and babe you're just chippin' away/ Fillin' up holes with glitter and gold/ All the things you paid for with the dreams you sold/ But it's all just a little too shiny for me”.
Overall, this is a very likeable album, which is aimed as much at the head and heart of the listener as it is at their feet. This may not get you up bopping to every song, but it will certainly put you in a reflective mood.
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