In the past few years, The Shires have truly established themselves as the reigning King and Queen of the UK country scene. This, their third album may propel them headfirst into the ranks of the American country royalty.
In five years, The Shires’ careers have rocketed. Since Ben first discovered Crissie over Facebook, they have released two albums of loving and tender duets, performed at Glastonbury and the Opry and joined the ranks of Scott Borchetta’s renowned label that boasts that little-known name, Taylor Swift. They have hit exactly the right spot of the wave that also pushed country music into the hearts of the UK public. The duo themselves have stated of the record, “Accidentally on Purpose is full of personal songs that really sums up the whirlwind journey we’ve been on together. From the first day we met, we’ve been crazy dreamers with big plans, who really believed that Country could break into the UK mainstream. For all those dreams, we never imagined it would all happen so quickly and we’re so proud and excited to be releasing our third album.” Such dreams come through, hitting a powerful, emotional and hopeful note, eliciting emotion yet again from the UK country nation’s sweethearts.
This third album then, was one eagerly awaited by fans now from both sides of the pond. Perhaps this was their most daunting release so far, given the current popularity of country music in the UK, that has enabled the continued growth of C2C and given rise to yet more UK-based country artists, including Ward Thomas, The Wandering Hearts and Una Healy, alongside the simple evidence of the success and magnitude of Brave and My Universe, that had powerfully showcased the immensity of their talent – both in Crissie’s voice and Ben’s unforgettable songwriting. With many continued critics of the UK country genre in general, questioning can a UK band ever really be ‘country’?, they had, yet again, to prove themselves anew. It is just that line, that Ben’s songwriting had so masterfully walked notably in Brave, with singles including ‘Made in England,’ and ‘Nashville Grey Skies,’ providing nods to their heritage, yet also to their place in the genre overseas. This, their third album arose again to the challenge, with their roots remaining firm, yet standing tall amongst the country greats, both in the quality of songwriting, and as she proves time and time again, in the power of Crissie’s voice, and in the harmony and magic of their voices together. This album combines all the best elements from their previous two, wrapping them in an even more country-sounding album than was evident previously.
For this album, The Shires worked with the great Lindsay Rimes, renowned for his work with Thomas Rhett, Kelsea Ballerini, Kane Brown, Lo Cash. His work on the record is clear, with the production value of the record stepping up a notch. The bigger, more produced hits such as ‘Guilty,’ provide a more Kelsea Ballerini-esque tight-rope walk between pop and country. Tipping our hats now to Rimes, this third album by The Shires, may yet be the one that enables them to pack out arenas, with additional instrumentals and elements of the album that definitely tends better toward a full-band than a single vocalist and guitar.
The album is spearheaded by ‘The Hard Way,’ an entry to the album that is like returning home – reminding us of all the elements that made Brave capture so many hearts. Working with the legendary producer, Jimmy Hogarth, responsible for records, such as Amy Winehouse, ‘The Hard Way,’ sets the album at just the right note, upbeat, yet with a melancholic note that enables the whole record to be taken seriously.
The album then shifts to ‘Echo’ that steps up the powerfully popular elements of ‘Beats to Your Rhythm’ to another level. This is a single made for radio, and popular listenership and is bound to swell the ranks of the Shires fandom yet further. Alongside this is the similarly upbeat, Guilty, the first single to be released from the record. The refrain ‘rules are made to be broken,’ is followed through in the song. Guilty cleverly dismantles the confines that had, perhaps, previously held The Shires back from entering the big leagues, exhibiting a powerful anthem-like tune that is reminiscent of bands like Lady Antebellum. However, despite this, this single is perhaps the weaker point of the album, a single that does not do the power of the entire record justice.
Though I thought it was nigh impossible for the duo to beat their reigning sweet ballads – ‘State Lines’ and ‘I Just Wanna Love You’ – this track does just that, and leaves me feeling truly guilty for cheating on my former flames, with my new passion for this sweet, lilting melody. It is everything The Shires do best, relatable sweet lyrics, coupled with angelic harmonies that I defy anyone to critique or remain emotionless to. It is a quiet track poised with just the right tender touch to make it a ballad capable of becoming the new wedding anthem of the moment.
It is the second half of the album that perhaps marks the greatest and shrewdest part of the evolution of their sound though.’Stay the Night’ was, arguably, the most anticipated track from the album for many non-country fans, given that it was written by those heavyweights of English songwriting, Ed Sheeran and John Newman, but also that it was famously given to the duo, when Crissie demonstrated her ability to drink a pint of beer whilst doing a handstand. Despite being the only track that was not written by Ben Earle, the tune fits seamlessly into the mix, even with all the trappings that make it clear this is an Ed Sheeran song, including the acoustic guitar strums.
‘Ahead of the Storm,’ lyrics backed with repeated bars of guitar melody that give it a catchy, lilting feel that feels cleverly attuned with modern country fresh from Nashville at the moment. In contrast, ‘Speechless’ is a huge piano ballad that follows hot on its heels, where the duo’s voices are allowed to sing true and exhibit their powerful and unique sounds, before a bigger production is allowed to support them. This is clever producership and lends itself to a far more rounded and potentially powerful, live moment when the duo head out on tour.
‘River of Love’ brings back the country note again with full force. Perhaps it is of little surprise that the track was written with Liz Rose, most known for Taylor Swift’s ‘White Horse,’ ‘Teardrops on My Guitar’ and ‘You Belong With Me.’ This track feels more like a return to the likes of ‘Beats to Your Rhythm’ with the accompanying backing vocals, but with the new addition of hand-clap percussion that sets it aside from their previous two albums.
‘Strangers’ is a powerful vocal moment for both, a belter that may yet make its way on to this year’s karaoke setlists. It would be a mistake to overlook Crissie for Female Vocalist of the Year on the basis of this song alone. The album rounds out with ‘World Without You’ and the heavy piano ballad, ‘Loving You Too Long,’ that round out the craft of the album that has clearly been thought through carefully and tenderly.
Truly, there seems no doubt that this is a hell of a step in the progression of the duo into the big leagues of Nashville, whilst remaining true to their roots and there seems no way that the album will disappoint any of their most traditionalist loyal fans nor impress a whole quadrant of new fans. With bigger production, they have retained the core of their music – huge vocals coupled with sweet and shrewd lyrics – and taken these up ten notches.