Laney Wilson wasn’t wrong. She said Country’s cool again… We’ve always loved country, so we’re more than happy to see it getting a huge global boost.
Let’s set the scene a bit.
We’re sitting on a grey, rainy afternoon. Going through our new artists. Pop, pop, pop, lofi, lofi, lofi, something interesting, jazz, sometimes AI, and a confusing mashup…
Suddenly, JUTT HUFFMAN.
IS JUTT HUFFMAN A REGULAR ON OUR PLAYLISTS?
No. But more than one of his tracks will fit perfectly on a couple of our personal playlists.
What took us by surprise was that we were beginning to get used to having SoundCloud waveforms and static images sent to us.
After a few hundred, they start to look very similar. It’s not that we don’t love hearing all of this new stuff; we really do, but Jutt Huffamn jumped out because of this:
Color us warm amber, we too want to drink with the Whiskey Hell Bent Angels. You can call us cliché if you like, but we love nothing more than to have a country song that features drinking, heartbreak, and a foot-stomping beat.
In the last couple of years, we’ve been treated to our fair share of country collaborations. Which means we (as a global collective) have heard Country more often in the main charts, in a range of different flavors. Post Malone, Falling in Reverse, MGK, and Jelly Roll have all been getting in on the country action.
It’s cool to see, but it runs the risk of very popular acts of other genres taking over. Which makes acts like Jutt all the more important.
Whiskey Hell Bent Angels is as country as country can be.
From the press release:
Originally from a small village in Ohio, Huffman built his reputation through a decade of relentless performances in Nashville’s honky-tonks, developing a unique style marked by high-energy shows, soulful vocals, and standout musicianship on both rhythm and lead guitar.
Though long considered an underground artist, Huffman has steadily carved out a loyal and growing fanbase.
His electrifying live presence has earned him opportunities to share stages with an eclectic lineup of major artists, including Luke Bryan, Kid Rock, Josh Turner, Craig Campbell, Tracy Byrd, Morgan Wade, Drake White, Uncle Kracker, Gavin DeGraw, The Band Perry, Ryan Hurd, Brooke Eden, Keb’ Mo’, Craig Morgan, and Cooper Alan, among others.
Now based in South Florida and touring extensively, Huffman has amassed more than 21,000 followers worldwide. After releasing his self-recorded debut Jutt LP in 2015, he stepped back from recording to refine his songwriting and production while continuing to perform hundreds of shows annually. That period of growth set the stage for his current creative resurgence.
We can safely say that between his 2015 Jutt LP and the release of WHISKEY HELL BENT ANGELS, Jutt’s vocals are stronger and more confident. The quality of production, mix, master, and even playing is significantly improved. The step back to refine his skills has more than paid off.
That said, Miss Amazing from Jutt LP is high energy, and the intro is killer.
You can hear a lot of different influences pulled into the EP, whereas the much cleaner Whiskey Hell Bent Angels feels like a pure country banger.
It feels '“wall of sound” which we love, because if we were in the audience of a live show, we’d want our hair blown back. The punchy snare combined with a high-paced kick and big guitars gives you plenty of time to dance or stomp your foot - whatever your speed is.
Pedal steel or slide, we don’t know, and frankly, we don’t care. We get those country-signature swells during transitions, the twang of the electric sits where you might ordinarily hear some keys for some brightness.
In terms of vocals, we’ve got an interesting cadence, almost spoken word, in the opening, and a switch about 33 seconds in to more of a singing style for the chorus, switching back for the next verse. He does it with ease.
The technical vocal has slight grit to it and sits exactly where you want it to, on top of the instruments. 2.40 Jutt shows off his breath control with a nice high-registered vocal run.
If you listen to 80 Degrees and Jutt Lp this will be no surprise. His vocals very easily drive the song, any song forward, and he’s not shy of experimenting with pitch and speed, making him interesting to listen to. We love 80 Degrees on account of the harmonica.
What comes across most is that throughout his work, the video, and even the cover art and website, is that Jutt is having fun with it, and it is hard not to go along for the ride.
So we will.
Do you need to be a country fan to love this one? Nope.
All you really need is to love overdriven big beats, rapid pace, and upbeat music.
Jutt stopped us on the scroll because he offered fun, great vocals, and a music video. He’s not here to fade into the background or to be another country music star.
We’re excited for what comes next.
3.5/5
source: jutthuffman