By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio
The April Family “Champagne” (2018)
“Boys are mean and girls let you down,” Kylie Whitney testifies from her heart in the April Family’s catchy, foot-stomping new single “Champagne,” the trailer for the trio’s highly-anticipated upcoming album House of Cards.
Love, as it happens, can scale the higher highs but it sometimes brings us down to the lowest lows, at which point the bottle can come into play as at least a temporary salve. Champagne and other similar liquid refreshments may have their downsides, but they never broke this narrator’s heart.
Singing like the most committed of traditional country truth tellers, Whitney sings this old-fashioned, cautionary tale like it is, acknowledging that drink doesn’t do her “… any favours when it makes me speak the truth / But it sure don’t break my heart like you do.” So, a little liquid solace in the face of an aching heart.
This truth-telling session is set to a stomping beat, a celebration of uptempo country heartache, played with gusto by lead guitarist Casey Atkins and multi-instrumentalist and Pure Pop Radio favorite Michael Carpenter, who makes the track sing playing an upright bass, acoustic guitar, banjo, a snare drum, and percussion. As noted above, Kylie Whitney sings her Loretta Lynn heart out, turning out a standout lead vocal. All three Family members stomp and clap.
And we, the audience, applaud. Love’s a tough road to travel; records like this one make the trip easier. Now, bring on the album.
Where to Get It: Amazon, iTunes, Google Play. Stream on Spotify
Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995, and the 24-hour Pure Pop Radio station, which ended this last August. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today. Happy New Year!
