Chris Stapleton returns with his new record – Higher – out everywhere tomorrow.
Simply put, Chris Stapleton is one of the most revered and respected musicians in Nashville. Having made a name for himself penning songs for other artists, he burst onto the scene with his 2015 debut studio album Traveller. Since then, Stapleton has recorded three more records, won 8 GRAMMY Awards and 14 CMAs – including a win in 2023 for Entertainer of the Year. Now, he returns with his latest album – Higher – that paints a picture of America in his signature sound.
Higher does not deviate from Stapleton’s existing material, but it does layer on an even greater degree of introspection and depth that makes the album a masterful addition to his catalogue, positing an artist of timeless appeal.
Despite his long time marriage to singer and collaborator Morgane Stapleton, some of the finer moments on the record are when Stapleton grapples with themes of heartbreak on the record. Indeed, the album kicks off with ‘What Am I Gonna Do?’ that tackles the pain of the moving on after moving on, questioning ‘What am I gonna do / When I get over you / What am I gonna be / When you’re just a memory?’ It’s heartbreakingly raw in its delivery. Elsewhere, the lonesome ‘The Day I Die’ is incredibly compelling. ‘When my heart stops breaking / When my eyes won’t cry / When there’s a day I can live without you, baby / It’ll be the day I die.‘ The heavy touch of slide guitar on the record underlines the painful and raw emotions of the track.
Stapleton has been very open about his sobriety recently, telling GQ that he had turned to alcohol previously to help him write songs. ‘I like to tell people that I got into a drinking contest with myself in my 20s, and I lost.’ It’s a theme he handles on the thrumming track ‘South Dakota.’ (‘I wanted that whiskey in my coffee cup/ Had last night ringing in my head/ Telling me I oughta go back to bed… I keep on staying behind / I’m in South Dakota / Trouble ain’t hard to find.‘) It’s a bluesy track, with an intense groove that fuels the track with an intense energy, thanks in part to a lingering, plaintive guitar solo that underlines the gravitas of the message he conveys in the song and the intensity of dealing with this kind of addiction. It’s a theme he returns to on ‘The Bottom’ – a rocking track about addiction and drowning out pain in alcohol. ‘The bottle holds the whiskey / The whiskey holds the man… I don’t have a problem / If I don’t see the bottom.’ It’s a driving and compelling track that changes up the pace of the record, in a light-touch honky tonk imbued track that does not discount the gravity of the subject matter. Finally, later track ‘Weight Of Your World,’ sees Stapleton sing to a friend about taking the weight of the world on for them. ‘Give me your darkest hour / Give me your deepest fear / Just give me a call / And I’ll be here.’ It’s moving and immensely tender, exploring the edges of depression.
More so than his previous records, Stapleton does not seem afraid to put his love for his wife out there and there’s a good deal of lovesongs on the record. These aren’t the kind of sappy songs that come to mind with that word, these are raw and blues-y and are a delight. So, the more whimsical ‘Trust’ offers a welcome reprieve from the record. ‘Trust in true love / Trust in time / Trust in forever … Lose ourselves, just like lovers do / Trust in me, like I trust in you.’ Stapleton paints a picture of a cold world, where love is the saving grace and safe space of trust. On ‘It Takes a Woman,’ Stapleton offers a quiet, loving ballad, with a bluesy underbelly. ‘It takes a woman / To be all I can / To feel like a man / It takes a woman.’ Stapleton’s vocal is unparalleled here, with the aid of his wife Morgane. There’s a soulful intimacy to the track, in the stripped-back production, that makes it intense and compelling. Finally, the title track sees Stapleton get more introspective, in this loving ballad that lets his vocal take centre stage over the simpler lyrics, as he sings to a lover about them taking him ‘higher’ and making his life transcendent.
Stapleton indulges a more sultry side than he has shown previously. On, ‘The Fire,’ he sings to a lover about how much he wants them – ‘Why can’t you see, the fire inside me?’ – and on ‘I Think I’m In Love With You,’ he moves into a steady, grooving sound. It’s a delight of a track that is an easy stand out from the record. The swelling strings infuse the track with life. ‘I think I’m in love with you / I didn’t know it at the time / I know what I want to do / It’s making me lose my mind.’ Finally, on ‘Loving You On My Mind,’ he indulges again in the more soulful side of his sound, in another more sultry song. ‘I walk around and dream about you / Every single minute of every day.‘ At the bridge, Stapleton lets rip on his husky, signature vocal and it’s pure magic.
There’s a definite play around the edges of his sound on the album, into a more blues and Wild West infused sound, combining the two in a hugely palatable sonic mix. ‘White Horse’ – the lead out single from the album – is a fiery, guitar-driven track fuelled with all the intense energy of the Wild West. ‘If you want a cowboy on a white horse / Riding off into the sunset / If that’s the kinda love you wanna wait for / Hold on tight, girl, I ain’t there.’ Here, Stapleton sings about being untethered and wild, not yet ready to put down roots. It’s gasoline-fueled brilliance. ‘Crosswind’ is a sweeping honky tonk melody painting pictures of the Wild West and the closing track on the album – ‘Mountains of My Mind’ – sees Stapleton sing about the bridges between different emotions and places, in a more stripped back track, accompanied by a plucky electric guitar. ‘I’ve been trying all this time, but I still can’t climb the mountains of my mind.’ It feels like Stapleton is on the cusp of a new frontier of his sound, but he is not quite brave enough to really go there yet, possibly his next album will go full blues or rock and roll, but it’s not yet clear. If you’re a fan of Stapleton already, this record will be a delight, but the record will not garner many new fans to his cause, traipsing – as it does – well-trodden territory for the star.
Pick up a copy of the record here.
