Muscadine Bloodline: Quarantine WorkTapes Vol. 1

Cole German Raised Rowdy Contributor

They’re back… well from a distance at least. You’ve probably heard by now that boys from Muscadine Bloodline dropped a pretty cool project titled Quarantine Work-Tapes Vol. 1. It features the social distanced Charlie Muncaster and Gary Stanton recording songs from their own homes with just the use of the recording app on their phones. There are artists that will always sounds better when it’s just them and an acoustic guitar and Muscadine is near the top of that list for me. It’s amazing what these guys can do with just their voices and a six-string. What’s unique about this project is that you get to hear Charlie and Gary play songs separately and I thought it was pretty awesome to see the different sides of the duo express themselves in a solo fashion. They both bring totally different talents to the table and that’s what makes Muscadine Bloodline such a threat. When you listen to them solo you can really dissect the unique skill-sets that they both have. The work-tape consists of six songs, three by Gary and three by Charlie. I’m going to breakdown my favorite from each of the guys.

 

“Can’t Not Do” – Charlie Muncaster

Old time country feels from this one. I guarantee everyone can relate to this in some way or another. We all have that one thing that we know we shouldn’t do but just can’t help ourselves. Whether it’s booze, cigarettes, women, or any other one of the countless vices out there, we all have one. It is a tale as old as time and it has been the root of countless country songs. This stripped down piece gives you a kind of authenticity that you just won’t find in a record and it is also a great chance to hear Charlie show off the most underrated voice in Nashville (in my opinion).

 

“The Highway” – Gary Stanton
There’s something healing about listening to Gary pick a guitar and tell a story. It’s not too often we get to hear him this intimate so I took full advantage of this song and have been playing it on repeat for weeks. I think Gary’s songwriting is as good as anyone else in this town. Charlie has been saying that Gary is the most talented person in Nashville and I think I might be officially boarding the bandwagon. I liked this song so much because it is something totally different than what I expected. Did I think he was going to sing about rolling one up and taking the “high”-way? I absolutely did not. A topic that I feel most artists stay away from writing about, Gary went right in and sent this one out there to all those who take the highway when others choose to take the low-road.

 

If you haven’t already, go check out the Quarantine Work-Tape Vol. 1 because it seems like the boys might already be cooking up volume 2!

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