Country is a musical style I've never really found appealing. Moreover, it's one style I can't really see the appeal of, at least not outside the backwaters of the USA, where it has a relevance as well as a cultural lineage. Elizabeth Cook's got herself a tough crowd in this reviewer, then.
All the more reason to be surprised by the fact I can see a number of good points in this album. While the opener, 'All The Time' sees our Liz come across like some kind of clingy stalker type ('I chase you down that mountain and I chase you up that creek / I chase you starting Sunday through the end of the week,' she tells the object of her desire) and really set my teeth on edge with the rather piercing twangy vocals, I found myself warming to her as the album progressed.
Perhaps it's the openness and the sincerity of her autobiographically-inspired songs that comes through, imbuing the music with a touching humanity and sense of emotional reality. Perhaps it's the occasional humour that lifts the songs above the usual tales of love and loss ('when you say yes to beer, you say no to booty,' she sings on 'Yes to Booty'), although some of the more serious songs - 'Herion Addict Sister' for example - are so sincere it becomes difficult not to view them as parody. Perhaps it's because 'Welder' sits that the rockier end of the country spectrum, without being nearly as contrived or forced-sounding as, say, Shania Twain. Even her country-rock power ballads, such as 'Not California' are quite enjoyable. By which, of course, I mean I made it to the end without wanting to smash anything, and can definitely see mass appeal in this album.
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