Victory Fund's Annise Parker - Metro Weekly - July 16 2020

Music
ROBIN HARPER
Lit Up
The newly-rechristened Chicks return with a comeback album
that showcases their greatest strengths. By Sean Maunier
WHEN YOU’RE THE CHICKS, DON’T HAVE THE OPTION OF DOING
the right thing without everyone noticing. When the associations with the
antebellum southern states became too glaring to ignore, they dropped the
“Dixie” from their name about as quietly as possible when even your most innocuous
gestures get blown up through a megaphone and become immediately polarizing. After
all, this is a band that for almost two decades has worn Natalie Maines’ comments on
the Iraq War that alienated huge swathes of the then-Dixie Chicks’ fanbase overnight,
an event still referred to as “the incident.” Digging in their heels rather than backtracking
to salvage the situation may have lost them some fans for good, but it cemented
their reputation as artists who would rather stick true to who they are than water
themselves down.
Gaslighter (HHHHH), their first album since 2008’s Not Ready to Make Nice, is altogether
a more buoyant, upbeat record than its predecessor, although the stomping poprock
boldness remains. Producer Jack Antonoff’s fingerprints are all over the album,
lending the songwriting a larger-than-life power pop punch. That
said, however, their signature vocal harmonies are as captivating
as ever and Emily Strayer’s banjo and the occasional flourish of
fiddle or steel guitar brings warmth to the project.
While the trio has more or less put country behind them, the title track is a prime
example of the genre’s great tradition of wronged women out for justice and vengeance.
The target of its indictment is left vague, although Maines’ recent divorce allows us to
make some educated guesses. Later in the album, almost as a coda to “Gaslighter,”
“Tights on my Boat” is addressed to a cheating partner, full of sharp lyrics like “I hope
Click Here to Watch the
Video for “Gaslighter”
Gaslighter will be available to stream and download on July 17th.
you die peacefully in your sleep/Just kidding
I hope it hurts like you hurt me.” We
may not know exactly what Maines means
when she sings, “You’re gonna get what
you got coming to ya,” but it’s hard not to
root for her anyway.
As much fun as they’re having on this
album, The Chicks are keen to remind
fans that they are still willing to stake out
a stand on the things that matter to them.
“March, March,” the only pointedly political
song on the album, is a stirring tribute
to social justice movements that swells
and soars and easily stands up with the
title track as one of the most catchy songs
on the album.
After “Tights on my Boat,” the album
takes a turn, winding towards its end on
a slower, more pensive note. “Julianna
Come Down” is an empowerment anthem
with some on-the-nose lines that give
voice to the difficulty and loneliness of
putting on a brave face and performing
for the world. As the
album ends on a vulnerable,
confessional
note with “Set Me
Free,” we are reminded that as much raw
talent as The Chicks have, what truly sets
them apart is knowing who they are and
what they bring, and refusing to deviate
from it even for a second.
JULY 16, 2020 • METROWEEKLY.COM
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