Kayla Wass
“Steel Guitars & Broken Hearts” I recently did a story on Kayla Wass, to put it simply WOW. I am so impressed with her singing. So, this is a review of her newest CD that came out this year. First off it has a great title “Steel Guitars & Broken Hearts” that is just beautiful. There are 12 amazing songs on this album, Kayla wrote one and co-wrote three songs. Kayla has such a beautiful voice and a way of singing that she makes each song her own. The album starts off strong with one of my favorites. “House Whiskey”. This takes the sensitive subject of alcohol abuse to a different level. This song was written in such a way that you could look at it where the person is just drinking the cheap Whiskey at the bar, which is referred to as House Whiskey or that they are drinking at home. I love the line “Too Much House Whiskey, Don’t Make A Home”, When you hear this first song, you know right away that Kayla has a strong & beautiful voice which is perfect for this style of music. The music for this song, has the right of amount of Country & Honky Tonk mix. The second song is “Pearls & Polyester” this song is about a High-Class girl falling in love with a Good Country Boy. This song has that 90’s Country Music feel to it. This song is a romantic way of saying that you never know where you will find love. Third song “I’m Not Looking Back” is a beautiful written song, Kayla sings it in such a way that you hear every bit of the emotions of the song. You definitely can feel how the woman in the song is just moving on. I think this song really shows the power in Kayla voice, the way she holds those long powerful notes and the way she starts & ends the song it just grabs your heart. The fourth song is “Slippin’” is a beautifully written song about a relationship going bad. Love the song is full metaphors about how the relationship just isn’t the same. Kayla does another great job of putting the feelings into the song. So that you can actually know what the women is going thru… The Fifth song “The Bottle” this song should be in the list of Best Country Songs Ever. This song is the perspective of a Whiskey Bottle. Kayla has the perfect tone for this song, she starts every line with a lower note and then brings it up for the chorus. The way this song is written and sung is right up there with George Jones song “He Stop Loving Her Today” The sixth song is “It’s Always A Song” this has definitely got the 90’s Country vibe. It has a wonderful message about how music can always bring back memories, be bad or good. Kayla’s voice in this song has the right energy. Kind of reminds me of Mary Chapin Carpenter. Another one of my favorites. The seventh song “Frozen Whiskey” is another good song. This is another perspective of someone with a drinking problem. But this song is from the side of the women having to deal with his drinking, showing how it makes a difference of what he drinks. Cause we all know that drinking can affect your personality. That is what makes this song so good, I don’t think that there is another one like it. The eighth song “Why Baby Why” I know this title is the same as a Webb Price song. But let me tell you, it is not. This song is another one that has that 90’s Country sound. Kayla’s vocals on this are impeccable, especially on the chorus. Plus, she finishes it off with a powerful ending. The song is about someone having trouble leaving a relationship. Beautiful written. The ninth song “I Pour” this song is another 90’s Country sound. This song is about someone trying to drink away a bad relationship. I always say if you want to write a good Country song then write about Whiskey. Kayla gives an excellent performance on this song, she has great harmonies on this. The tenth song “I won’t Give Up” this is a cover by Jason Mraz. Kayla does an outstanding job on this song. She puts so many emotions into it. I love how she kept it to the original The eleventh song “Nothing More Than Words” This song is written by Kayla. This is another of my favorites. I love how this song switches things around at the end. The girl realizes that she isn’t going to be the only one with a Heartache in the relationship. So, she is now Gone Like The Wind. Kayla vocals on this song are just beautiful. The last song “My Heart Is Talking To You” all I can say about this song is Wow. This is one of the most beautiful songs that I have ever heard in a while. The way this was written you really don’t know the story till almost the end and then it just tears your Heart out.. Perfection… Ok, I can’t tell you how many times I listened to this album so that I could do this review. But I know that I could listen to it 10 more times without a problem. Kayla Wass has such a beautiful voice and amazing control. Kayla has one of those voices that is just so smooth and clean that from the first note you just have to sit back and listen. She transports you to another time and place. I don’t know what Kayla’s plans are, but she definitely needs to be on the radio. This album is a strong contender for my favorite album in 2023. Review by Mike Bange
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Kayla Wass I just recently discovered Kayla Wass, all I can say is WOW. This young lady has got a voice, her tone is near perfect and the control that she has is impeccable. I have just recently got back to listening to Country music that is made today. Because of a good friend of mine who sings real honest Country music. This is how I feel about Kayla also, She definitely has a Country voice, and not the twangy kind which is nothing wrong with that. But Kayla’s is more of the smooth country voice that is filled with emotions you can feel when she sings. I recently got her CD and I think that I listen to it at least 4 times in a row. Besides Kayla’s unbelievable voice she is one heck of a songwriter. I believe that Kayla has learn the secret of a great Country song, which is “Whisky” because she has at least 4 on this amazing album. The album even has a great title “Steel Guitars & Broken Hearts” if that doesn’t scream Country music I don’t know what does… I will just mention a couple of my favorite songs off this album because I will be doing a full Album review coming up soon. The first one is “House Whiskey” this is just a great song that tackles a tough issue in life and Kayla does in a way that is not the usual way. She describes the problem in such a poetic way. I love the main line “Too Much House Whiskey, Don’t Make Home”. The second one is “The Bottle”, here again Kayla sings this song in the perspective of the Whiskey Bottle not the person. This is so well done. So, look forward to a full album review coming up in a few weeks, until check out the links below to learn more about Kayla Wass. Please support her in any way you can, I believe this young lady has a great future ahead. I also got a chance to ask Kayla some questions, please enjoy her answers. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100026605400265 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvkuRV_2SbjcyVUyeBREVcg https://music.apple.com/us/artist/kayla-wass/1608241012 https://open.spotify.com/artist/4MGa4tXeC2YKJrp7JCxqz2 1. How long have you been playing music? I’ve been singing professionally for 19 years, but I have loved singing since I could speak. I only started playing guitar more seriously about 10 years ago. 2. How many bands have you been in? I started out by joining the Mainely Country band back home and about a year later formed my own band, The Kayla Wass Band. I think we had that band for about 4 years before I moved to Nashville. Once in Nashville, it’s very different. You don’t really stick to just one group of players because everyone is off doing things with multiple people, so I have a list of people for each instrument that plays with me. They’re all fantastic musicians who just fall into place seamlessly in each set! It’s really amazing to be a part of. 3. Where were you born? I was born and raised near Bangor Maine and moved to Nashville a little over 12 years ago. 4. Are you self-taught? Vocally, I am self-taught. I did choir all through school, but never had any country lessons except for one at about 22 years old, with Renee Grant Williams to work on breath control and how to harness higher notes and body positioning. With guitar, I took lessons for two years with a guy who’s like family, Kevin Overlock. I started at 9 and went for about a year before I decided I wanted to do other things. But when I wanted to pick it back up a little bit at 18, he had already laid that foundation down, which was a huge help. And actually, Kevin is still my lead player back home anytime I go to play Maine gigs! 5. Who are your biggest influences? There are a lot of female country influences dating back to Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline. Then you move up into the 90s and it’s women like Trisha Yearwood, Patty Loveless, Martina McBride, The Judds. And my biggest current influence is Ashley McBryde. I learned some of my vocal tricks from people like Alanis Morissette, Gwen Stefani/No Doubt. 6. What style of music do you consider yours? I’m definitely a 90’s country kind of girl, but I like to range outside a little as well. The new record has a lot of 90s/early 2000s country influence 7. What was your first gig? How old were you? Honestly, it’s been so long I don’t remember exactly where it was. I know that I was 17 and it was with the Mainely Country Band. My first ever time out on a stage was during a cabaret show for my show choir junior year at 16. It was the first time I felt confident enough to get up on a stage. I sang ‘Arms of the Angel’ by Sarah McLachlan. 8. What advice do you have for someone starting out in the music business? If you are solely a vocalist, my biggest recommendation is to learn an instrument to be able to back yourself up. That way, you don’t ever get stuck unable to do a show because your guitar player got stuck in traffic, or something happened that they didn’t show up. You are self-sufficient. But also practice a ton and be prepared. Have FUN with it! Whether there’s one person in the audience or 1,000. You have the power to change someone’s day for the better with your music. 9. Do you write your own songs? I do write and co-write. I’ve got about five songs so far and getting into more these days. I’ve got some really fantastic writer friends who are inspiring me and showing me their process and influence. I really love it! 10. What would people be surprised to hear that you have in your personal record collection? Dave Matthews Band, probably. I also had an emo and rap phase growing up. But these days, as long as it has a good melody, great lyrics, or killer musicians, I’m into it. 11. What would you be doing if playing music was not an option? I always dislike this question and we had a discussion about it on the road this weekend. If I have a backup, I’m not all in. My passion is for music and it’s what I dedicate my life to. If there comes a day where the passion is no longer there, I’ll need to find out what my new passion is. 12. Besides your own songs, what is your favorite song to perform? It constantly changes when you play full time. There’s always at least one Ashley McBryde that I feel the need to play each gig, if not 4-5 of them. I love singing ‘If I Were You’ by Terri Clark and ‘No Place That Far’ by Sara Evans. Then there’s plenty of 90’s male country music from Joe Diffie to Tracy Lawrence to big harmony bands like Diamond Rio. 13. If you were strictly a songwriter, who would you like to see sing your songs? People who have pure vocals like Ashley McBryde, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, Randy Houser are incredible vocalists. He would be cool to have sing one of my songs. Mark Wills is another incredible pure vocalist. |
AuthorHello, My name is Michael. I am into music, have been for over 48yrs. Big fan of all kinds of music, right now it has been the Blues for the last 10yrs. I do not play any instruments, But I very interested in the recording aspect of the industry. Have messed around with it a little and always learning new things about it. I have met many wonderful people because of Music.. Hope you enjoy my Blogs... In the last two years I have been producing House Concerts. I also in the past 2 years got to produce and engineer an album for a very good friend of mine from Sweden "Magpie". Archives
February 2024
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