Carrie Underwood - "Denim & Rhinestones"

[.indulgecountry]

It's HERE!

[taylor]

Storyteller was found dead. What a fantastic album in every metric, from front to back.

[SHOOTER]

Her masterpiece! I cannot wait to see what singles they go with.

[.indulgecountry]

I dunno if it quite matches Storyteller for me, but that is a lofty aspiration, and I fancy that album the most in her catalog because it leans in the best country direction sonically.

That said, this album is indeed absolutely FIRE and one of her most cohesive and strongest sets to date. There isn't a single dud in the mix, which is rare for a Carrie Underwood record, as almost all of her records have had anywhere from 1-4 skippable tracks. Everything here is a worthy listen, however, so it's gonna take awhile for me to really discern my favorites because on first listen I just found myself loving... all of it, lol.

Certainly a step up from the schizophrenic musical stylings of Cry Pretty.

[Elusive Chanteuse]

I'm halfway through this album, but I had to come in because...WOW. This is my favorite Country album of the year, and I'm only on track 6!

I look forward to finishing the rest of the album in the next hour.

[bornfearless2000]

2023 Grammy’s Album Of the Year
2023 American Music Awards Country Album of the Year
2023 Billboard Music Awards Country Album of The Year, Billboard 200 album


Still no CMAs or ACMs because they’re jealous.

[tim]

Please give us "Velvet Heartbreak" before the summer is over.

[zdm1998]

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS. Was super underwhelmed by Cry Pretty, but this has enough experimentation (the 80s sound) but still close enough to her signature sound to not feel out of place. Love it.

I want Burn and Velvet Heartbreak on my radio right now Ms Underwood.

[raylatch98]

So I'll probably be the unpopular opinion here but listening to this album once left me kind of underwhelmed. It doesn't have the lows that Cry Pretty did and as a whole it is better than that album.

But I am still not loving this album and still prefer her first 5 albums over it mainly as I prefer her how she sounds vocally on those albums. Obviously she can sing well but I have really cooled on her voice in recent years. That and as much as everyone seems to be so sure that this album has many radio smashes I am not as convinced. Obviously Carrie Underwood doesn't need any more radio success given her legacy. But hopefully there's a big hit for her somewhere in this album like we saw with "Bluebird".

[taylor]

“Hate My Heart,” “Crazy Angels,” “Burn,” “Poor Everybody Else,” and “Velvet Heartbreak” all NEED to be singles. I know she’s no Luke Combs at the format anymore and frankly at this point I don’t care all that much, but this is a six-deep record at LEAST.

[schnetzka]

I really like this album. It is not my favorite by her but it's very cohesive and she of course sounds great. I know lots of people are loving "Burn" but it's probably my least favorite from the album as of right now. Hoping it grows on me. "Poor Everybody Else" is my favorite from the album and she sounds so in her element!

[Crimsonio]

Jun 10, 2022 6:46:59 GMT -5 raylatch98 said:

So I'll probably be the unpopular opinion here but listening to this album once left me kind of underwhelmed. It doesn't have the lows that Cry Pretty did and as a whole it is better than that album.

But I am still not loving this album and still prefer her first 5 albums over it mainly as I prefer her how she sounds vocally on those albums. Obviously she can sing well but I have really cooled on her voice in recent years. That and as much as everyone seems to be so sure that this album has many radio smashes I am not as convinced. Obviously Carrie Underwood doesn't need any more radio success given her legacy. But hopefully there's a big hit for her somewhere in this album like we saw with "Bluebird".

I feel like you don't like anything, all your comments on here are negative.

[zdm1998]

Jun 10, 2022 7:39:06 GMT -5 taylor said:

“Hate My Heart,” “Crazy Angels,” “Burn,” “Poor Everybody Else,” and “Velvet Heartbreak” all NEED to be singles. I know she’s no Luke Combs at the format anymore and frankly at this point I don’t care all that much, but this is a six-deep record at LEAST.

I like to think the only reason they kept it 4 deep last era was due to the mediocre radio reception. Now she’s with a new label I hope they grant her more than just 4 cause this album has it.

[austin]

This is really cohesive despite all the different sounds she experiments with, and that makes it miles better than Cry Pretty was.

"Burn" NEEDS to be a single, that is the best thing I have heard from her in quite some time.

There are a few here that I don't see myself revisiting (the title track is awful & "Poor Everybody Else" just sounded loud to me) but overall this is a strong effort. I think she has a few other options for hits at radio too, including "She Don't Know," "Velvet Heartbreak" and even "Crazy Angels."

[raylatch98]

Jun 10, 2022 7:53:56 GMT -5 Crimsonio said:

Jun 10, 2022 6:46:59 GMT -5 raylatch98 said:

So I'll probably be the unpopular opinion here but listening to this album once left me kind of underwhelmed. It doesn't have the lows that Cry Pretty did and as a whole it is better than that album.

But I am still not loving this album and still prefer her first 5 albums over it mainly as I prefer her how she sounds vocally on those albums. Obviously she can sing well but I have really cooled on her voice in recent years. That and as much as everyone seems to be so sure that this album has many radio smashes I am not as convinced. Obviously Carrie Underwood doesn't need any more radio success given her legacy. But hopefully there's a big hit for her somewhere in this album like we saw with "Bluebird".

I feel like you don't like anything, all your comments on here are negative.

Literally right after this I went to another thread for another song praising it and there is plenty of music I do like. I like to think I am not a negative person, but I don't want to derail this thread that much so I will leave it at that. 

[3chords]

On first listen it screams radio friendly. Carrie is if anything an entertainer and I think she’ll really do well with this set of songs on her tour. Lyrically and emotionally it leaves something to be desired for me but that’s just personal taste and I know she wanted to have fun so that wasn’t her focus making it. I’m happy for all the Carrie fans who are loving it more than Cry Pretty!

[bigd79]

Well i went and bought the cd right when target opened this morning. I’ve gone through it about 3 times already and i really love the whole thing! Im with everyone who is saying there are no skips. My initial picks for singles that i think should be are:

Crazy Angels
Pink Champagne
Velvet Heartbreak

still love Denim & Rhinestones, and also really liking Hate My Heart & Faster quite a bit.

i like Burn except for the part where she sings burn 3x in a row. That part doesnt work for me. I think i would also love the song if it wasn’t for that part of it, cuz the rest of the song is great! I still like it though and wouldn’t skip it, but i do with she said burn once on that part. Make it a little longer. Like, buuuuurn, instead of burn, burn, burn.

Ghost Story, wanted woman, PEE, She Don’t Know and Garden i do also enjoy them but not quite as much as the others.

Overall i gotta give the album an A though, and might very well be my favorite carrie album to date! Im not quite ready to say that for sure yet, but this album is very much instant for me. It is soooo good!

[.indulgecountry]

Jun 10, 2022 7:57:34 GMT -5 zdm1998 said:

Jun 10, 2022 7:39:06 GMT -5 taylor said:

“Hate My Heart,” “Crazy Angels,” “Burn,” “Poor Everybody Else,” and “Velvet Heartbreak” all NEED to be singles. I know she’s no Luke Combs at the format anymore and frankly at this point I don’t care all that much, but this is a six-deep record at LEAST.

I like to think the only reason they kept it 4 deep last era was due to the mediocre radio reception. Now she’s with a new label I hope they grant her more than just 4 cause this album has it.

Considering she could've gone 5 deep on like... every album of her career and chose to only do it once with Carnival Ride, I would not get my hopes up at all for more than 4 singles, lol. That said, she's always done at least 4, so I think we can all bank on getting 3 more hits off the record once "Ghost Story" peaks, and they definitely have a lot of great choices.

[SHOOTER]

Velvet Heartbreak is that bitch and screaming to be sent to radio. Let us manifest this!

[zdm1998]

Jun 10, 2022 13:19:47 GMT -5 SHOOTER said:

Velvet Heartbreak is that bitch and screaming to be sent to radio. Let us manifest this!

SPEAK ON IT. THAT VELVAAATTT HEARTBREAKKK.

On a different note. Has everyone been able to find the album? A lot of people are having issues locating it in store. Rumor was Carrie went to take her traditional picture with her album on release day and it wasn’t even there. Hope this doesn’t effect her numbers.

[taylor]

^^ Thought Target was sold out but that wasn’t the case. It’s not available even at any of my Walmarts in my area…

[3chords]

The distribution has been terrible all around! I’ve found recent CDs at my Target in LA but I went to the same one to get a vinyl in January they were keeping them in the back and not out of the shelves. I was like…. Idk if this is a employee problem or the CDs aren’t actually making it in. Her numbers will be great for this day and age, she’s still a strong seller people buy like 10 copies 😂

[SHOOTER]

There has been a backlog in CD production but nothing compared to vinyl and it's kind of concerning that a major retailer like Target wouldn't have their own "Target exclusive" available on release day. I live in L.A. county and there's 0 copies in any stores within a 25-mile radius which is wild. Will check Walmart later today but the one local to me is very sporadic with the new releases they carry so I wouldn't be surprised if she's not in stock (yet).

[toomuchboy]

I feel like Crazy Angels and Pink Champagne are the best single choices. After that, I could see She Don't Know doing well with that hook ("What she don't know is she can have him!!"). "Faster" is the only ballad I could see doing well, feels in the same zone as "Heartbeat" (a previous success) while being different enough.

As far as comparing it to her other albums... Storyteller and Carnival Ride remain my favorites, but I'd probably slot this one at third above Cry Pretty at fourth, with My Savior at fifth (I'm generally more attached to Carrie's material from Storyteller onwards). Cry Pretty has higher highs than this for me, personally--unfortunately, it also had lower lows. D&R is more consistent throughout than CP, while being a little less adventurous and less ballad-heavy. Probably a wise decision to focus on radio success with this era, and she has a lot of options in that regard, imo.

[gardyfan]

Amazon told me a few weeks back that I wouldn't get it on release day. Latest look is showing me Tuesday for delivery.

[.indulgecountry]

[schnetzka]

I just bought it from Amazon and it should arrive sometime next week. I hope stores get stock in soon.

[3chords]

Jun 10, 2022 16:18:01 GMT -5 SHOOTER said:

There has been a backlog in CD production but nothing compared to vinyl and it's kind of concerning that a major retailer like Target wouldn't have their own "Target exclusive" available on release day. I live in L.A. county and there's 0 copies in any stores within a 25-mile radius which is wild. Will check Walmart later today but the one local to me is very sporadic with the new releases they carry so I wouldn't be surprised if she's not in stock (yet).

I bought Palomino at my Target in Sherman Oaks but not until Sunday or Monday and they had them and the other country albums that had come out. Not sure if they were there Friday though. I’ll check if they have Carrie tomorrow.

[bdrm87]

This is a strong effort from Carrie. On first listen I’m not sure if I hear any classics, but it’s consistently good without the filler I’ve come to expect from her albums, which is a pleasant surprise. This should definitely be a more successful era for her.

[Kanenrá:ke]

Played through 4 times today while I worked. This is a huge step up from the mess that was ‘Cry Pretty’. The highs here may need to grow on me to compete with her all time best but there really isn’t a skip among the track list. In fact I’ll comfortably say this is her most consistent album.

Hate My Heart is standing out atm as my favourite but we’ll let things settle for a few more listens.