I love Miranda Lambert‘s new album, Revolution. I’ve been a big fan of Lambert’s ever since her 2005 debut, Kerosene. I love her twangy voice. I love her kick-ass ways (on Kerosene‘s title tune, she sets fire to a cheating boyfriend’s shit … and maybe more). And I love the fact that she doesn’t seem to play by Nashville’s rules.
This probably explains why she isn’t a big star yet. Even though all three of her albums reached No. 1 on the country charts, she’s hit the country Top 10 singles chart only once. Her best song, “Famous in a Small Town” from 2007’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, was one of the year’s greatest songs … regardless of genre, and it stalled at No. 14 on the country charts.
Miranda Lambert scares Nashville.
And she kinda scares me.
As a vegetarian and the kinda guy you usually find working at an alt-weekly (liberal, hates guns, hates the fact we’re in a war started by the worst president ever, etc.), everything Lambert stands for is everything I’m against.
She hunts for sport. I brake for squirrels.
She loves meat. I’m vegetarian, thisclose to becoming vegan.
She packs a ton of firearms. I have an old baseball bat in my bedroom closet, just in case.
But I love the songs on Revolution, several of which deal with her pistol-packing, meat-consuming ways.
On “Only Prettier” Lambert talks about reaching over party lines (though she never comes out and says it, I’m pretty sure I know which side she’s on), because, you know, deep inside we’re all the same. It’s just that whatever party Lambert belongs to has much cuter people. It’s a good joke. And a great song.
More troubling, and even better, is “Time to Get a Gun,” arguably Revolution‘s centerpiece. Even though Lambert co-wrote most of the album’s songs, she didn’t write “Time to Get a Gun.” Veteran singer-songwriter Fred Eaglesmith did (he recorded it on his 1997 album, Lipstick, Lies & Gasoline). But Lambert makes it hers.
It’s a great track … and not nearly as obvious as a casual listen lets on. In the first verse, a neighbor’s car is stolen; in the second, the government is building a highway through her backyard. Both lead into verses that are more about security than threats: “Time to put something between me and the sun/When the talking is over, it’s time to get a gun.”
Of course, the liberal in me is thinking, “Well, yeah, but what if that gun ends up in the wrong hands? Where’s your security now?”
So there’s my dilemma. Do I let my political beliefs get in the way of what is clearly one of the year’s best albums? Of course, music fans confronted these issues before. Johnny Ramone was a staunch Republican, but I still listen to the Ramones’ music and I still love it. Neil Young supported Reagan in the ’80s (yeah, most of Young’s music sucked in the ’80s, but he’s still Neil Young). And there are several country and hard-rock artists I like who lean right
But Lambert is different. She poses for pictures with her guns (she even uses a shotgun as a mic stand). She brags that she killed “the first buck of the season.” And she would probably call me a pussy for not killing the spiders I find in my house (I usually bring them outside).
But I love her music. And I’m not gonna let my tofu-eating, tree-hugging, Rachel Maddow-watching ways get in the way of that. Maybe Lambert’s right: Even though, “We think a little differently,” as she sings. “We got a lot in common, you will see/We’re just like you.” Only prettier. —Michael Gallucci
This article appears in Oct 21-27, 2009.
I’m on Miranda’s end of the political spectrum, but there’s room in her fan base for anyone that wants too listen. I relate to her ‘outsider’ image as well. She’s too backwoods for the high-brow folks, too raucous for the geezers, and too traditional for pop culture’s liberal leanings, which makes for a perfect fit in my music player. Thanks supporting her anyway!
I’m not on her side of the political spectrum, but she’s one of my favorite acts. I would see your point more if she was out there telling people how to vote, but she doesn’t do that. As a liberal, you can probably appreciate/tolerate her views being different than yours considering she grew up in rural Texas; I presume you didn’t Michael.
hey Mike, i am a Neil young Fan and i am a conservative, republican, sounds funny, but i am not into his political songs or beliefs. You can still like certain music for musics’ sake and separate yourself from their political views. Anyone who says this can’t be done, knows NOTHING about music. music touches a part of our brains that have nothing to do with thinking or speach…its only when people began politicising music in the mid-late 60’s when it got all screwed up. How many Frank Sinatra songs are political?..uh..none..It began with the left. They were the first to do this. All music is good, if you like it, fine don’t worry about what the person supposedly believes in. you like it for the way it touches your soul, not your mind.
Getting back to Neil Young, his music did not “suck” as you say in the 80’s, if you follow his career, like i have been doing for the past 28 years, it was just an extention of the problems he was going through in his life at the time, it turned out to be a stylistic period. no it wasn’t the “heart of gold” neil that the average person knows, it was a different side of him, but it was good music never the less and CANNOT BE JUDGED MIKE just because he leaned right at the time, but let me say something else, most performers blow with the wind, when he supported Reagan that was the popular majority of the time, 85% of the country was behind him. These artists want to make money so they latch on to what is popular. John cougar mellancamp did the same thing in the 80’s..then the tide changes, they see what the majority of the country likes and base their musical decisions on that, so its a wishy-washy thing these artists do, just enjoy the music and forget all that.
Finally Mike,as someone who writes, i assume for a living, you should not put too much of your own opinion in an article, a little is ok, but you should report as unbiasedly as you can, but you CANNOT JUDGE the last president and say he was the “worst pres. ever” why, because you did not live throughout history through every single presidents’ time. All you know is the liberal medias biased attacks of slander and libel against the man. because they want so much to gain power and throw this country into socialism. When you have people dependant on the gov’t for EVERY need, they become co-dependants and feel they should keep re-electing these tyrants.
Mike, Our opinions and lifestyles are at opposite ends, but i enjoyed your article and hope you can enjoy good music guilt free, i do
These songs aren’t political by any means, hell I eat meat and own a gun does that make me a conservative, I think not. Also I would recommend you have no idea of what this girls beliefs are. Time to get a gun, is about feeling safe an has nothing more than that, she is not advocating anything. She is a hunter as are many liberals. I bet you would be surprised by her stance on issues. She has never and will never speak out because her audience is idiot rednecks, if she spoke her mind on politics like Natalie Maines she would be protested against. Before you assume something get all of the facts and don’t label people especially those you have never met and are just gossiping about. Otherwise a totally intriguing article.
Johnny Ramone was a Republican? I gotta go lie down for a while….
I’m a huge liberal too, but she’s my favorite country artist. I have to respect her oppinion and support her artistic freedom, and I agree with most of it. I am pro gun, but she is somewhat right about her side being prettier though, lol