There are albums you listen to, and then there are albums that transport you somewhere else. Ella Langley’s sophomore record, ‘Dandelion’, released April 10th, falls into the latter category. For only a second album, it sounds remarkably assured, and yet it doesn’t seem like she is trying to prove anything. She is just being herself.
If you had her single ‘Choosin’ Texas’ on repeat for the last couple of months (because honestly, who hasn’t?), then the kind of emotional world Langley is working in was already laid out for you a little bit. The song speaks about a relationship where your partner’s heart always belonged somewhere else, and taking the long road back to finding yourself again. What ‘Dandelion’ does so perfectly is take this song’s premise and let it unravel and breathe across 18 tracks without ever being repetitive. It explores all the versatile emotions of a doomed relationship, finding yourself, and slow country living in a traditional yet very refreshing way.
The album opens with ‘Froggy Went A Courtin’, an old Anglo-American folk tune. These opening seconds set the tone for Langley, her guitar, and her twangy vocals. It sounds like a simple on-the-spot jam session, almost like Langley is inviting listeners into her little world, and ends with the sound of cicadas before blending straight into the title track. From there, the natural metaphor of the dandelion does a lot of heavy lifting: breezy, wild, carefree, but also a little overlooked, capable of planting seeds all over the place.
The emotional core very much lives in the first half of the album. ‘We Know Us’ is a standout track - a slow dancer with a gorgeous slide guitar and strings bridge that hits you out of nowhere. ‘Be Her’ is another highlight track, reminiscent of the kind of song every woman has probably felt at some point, especially when coming out the other side of something difficult. Together with ‘Choosin’ Texas’, it sounds the most likely to be a more mainstream radio tune, and deservedly so. ‘Bottom of Your Boots’ rounds out the standouts: girly summer anthems that are highly addictive and built on catchy guitar lines you’ll be humming for days.
The shift in tone in the album’s second half was unexpectedly pleasant. With ‘I Gotta Quit’ and Kitty Wells' cover ‘It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels’, the record leans into something more upbeat and, well, honky-tonk. It truly shows Langley’s more playful and loose side. It is then followed by another highlight. Lyrically, ‘Last Call For Us’ tells the story of coming to terms with closing the chapter of a relationship, but musically, it is just as stunning. The steel guitar in itself is cinematic, and it’s hard to explain exactly how, but this song genuinely sounds like closing time in a saloon, where you can almost picture a couple, arm in arm, swaying to Langley’s ethereal vocals.
The production of the whole album is something really special. Co-produced by Langley, Nashville-based songwriter and producer Ben West, and certified country icon Miranda Lambert, it blends traditional country instrumentation, twangy vocals, acoustic guitar, and classical instruments, and yet it never feels old-fashioned. Langley is truly coming into her own in this record, and Lambert’s contribution seems significant in that.
Lambert’s career spans two decades, and she is considered one of the most highly acclaimed artists in ACM history. She also appears as a featured artist on ‘Butterfly Season’ and their voices complement each other so beautifully. It feels less like a cameo but more like Lambert has truly taken Langley under her wing and paved the way for artists like her to make it in the country scene. With lyrics like “it’s butterfly season, I’m finding my wings / a good time for leaving behind the old me”, it is hard not to read it as a passing of the torch between the two.
‘Dandelion’ is very much an album that screams girlhood, though it has been genuinely joyful watching grown men on social media having a boogie to it, too. It transports you to wooden porches, sunflower fields, saloons at closing time, and sunset drives on an empty road. Ella Langley released this album at the perfect time for spring and summer, proving that she is the moment in country music right now. The only question remaining is: how long before everyone catches up?
Christine Soloch
Image: ‘Dandelion’ Official Album Cover
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