ERNEST Perfectly Captures Love, Heartbreak, Friendships & Small Town Life In New Deluxe Album
Despite only achieving breakout success as a solo artist recently, following “Flower Shops” (feat. Morgan Wallen), ERNEST is no stranger to country music. While the pipeline from acclaimed songwriter to budding solo artist is commonly seen in Nashville, ERNEST takes it to new heights. One listen to his recently released deluxe album, Flower Shops: Two Dozen Roses, should make that clear. The long-awaited project is finally here, so y’all better grab your tissue boxes.
Photo Via Big Loud Records
We’re just going to say that there are twenty-six letters in the alphabet. Most of us would use them to write “she left me,” but that’d never suffice for the lyrical genius that is ERNEST. We already knew of ERN’s knack for painfully vivid imagery and clever metaphors, which the standard version of Flower Shops: The Album contained plenty of. Even the three-song sampler ahead of today’s full-length release contained one of his best-crafted, saddest lines - in “Unhang The Moon,” he sang “You broke me in two and all I wanna do / Is unhang the moon I hung for you.”
We had a feeling that Flower Shops: Two Dozen Roses would utilize similar techniques, and we were right. In the ten new tracks we heard today, ERN has truly outdone himself.
“It's great to finally have this continuation of the FLOWER SHOPS album out,” shared ERNEST in a press release. “I wrote almost all of these over the last year. I hope everyone listens to it from the beginning all the way through if they have the chance to - I track-listed it intentionally to follow a story that I think a lot of people can find themselves in at one point or another, so I hope people take the time to hear it in order."
The evenly paced yet hard-hitting “Anything But Sober,” especially its catchy hook, extends beyond a simple post-breakup beer song. The verses contain detailed depictions of the breakup itself and ERN’s resulting emotions. The listener feels as if they were there to witness the song’s events while he unpacks them. The chorus and bridge, fueled by desperation and frustration, carry a pulsating punch as he explains how he copes. An image we’re especially drawn to includes the “half-smoked four-leaf clover.”
It’s more than just illustrative lyrics that bring the takeaways of ERN’s songs to life. The rock n’ roll-infused “This Fire” alternates between two time signatures - the steadier, more pronounced chorus contrasts from the more bouncy verses. Such a layout renders the chorus more impactful, as the seriousness of the breakup is accentuated. Through some off-beat sections, excessive word repetition, and slightly slurred delivery on the spoken-word elements, he actually sounds drunk in “Drunk With My Friends.”
Overall, Flower Shops: Two Dozen Roses expertly incorporates a variety of musical and lyrical strategies to create some of the best work we’ve ever heard.
Music City is in his ERN's blood. His lifetime of musical influences creates a seamlessly fluid sound throughout the entire project. Each track is thoughtfully crafted, allowing fans to peek inside the mind of one of Nashville's finest. Needless to say, ERNEST is truly evergreen, a rarity in this town.
Building on the stories he started in the project’s standard version, Flower Shops: Two Dozen Roses demonstrates that no country singer can characterize a heartbreak quite like he can. Watch out y'all - ERN has arrived!