Zoe Records
2007
The Calling
About This Album
One thing is certain: Mary Chapin Carpenter has heard the sound of the new Nashville. She brings the electric guitars and she brings her Martin; she allows the mix to bring up those drums and basslines. She's no longer afraid of rock & roll as long as it blends with her brand of folkish country. After years of walking the outside, despite a hit record or two, seemingly afraid to really let it rip, she has arrived here, on The Calling. Oh yeah, yeah, that's a good thing; it may even be a great thing. Carpenter has always allowed her songwriting to take precedence over her recorded performances, and even though her album performances have sometimes been stellar, they've also been just a little too restrained. The title track that opens The Calling and "We're All Right" rock harder than anything she's ever cut. The beautiful thing is that with the bigger volume and the loosed electric six-strings, her big voice has more room and those killer hooks she writes don't disappear in the mix. They come off sounding like the anthems they should be. Carpenter has a hell of a way of looking at life from all sides, from behind the closed doors, from the empty lanes and the darkening countryside.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,4,6 and 9)

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