Ok Cowgirl's 'Rhinestone Cowgirl' Is a Big-Sky Indie Rock Record With Slide Guitar in Its Teeth
There’s a particular kind of confidence in naming your album Rhinestone Cowgirl and then not making a country record. Ok Cowgirl — Leah Lavigne’s Brooklyn project — borrows alt-country’s sense of space and its slide guitar and leaves the rest at the door, which is exactly why the thing works. Bandcamp Daily named it Album of the Day and pinned the appeal precisely: “Ruining your life never sounded so victorious.”
The Sonic Breakdown
The Production & Mix
The Low-End: Recorded in Asheville with Alex Farrar producing alongside the band and mixing, the record sits on Ryan Work’s bass and Matthew Birkenholz’s drums in a way that stays patient even when the guitars go wide. Dan Millice’s master keeps the loud parts loud without flattening the space underneath them — the “patient tempos and loud, aching hooks” Bandcamp Daily heard are a mix decision as much as a songwriting one.
The Spatial Dynamics: With Lavigne, Jacob Sabinsky, John Miller, Farrar and Work all tracking guitars, the arrangements could easily have congealed. Instead the parts are panned and voiced into what Bandcamp Daily called “wide, arid soundscapes,” slide guitars wailing off in the middle distance while the rhythm guitars hold the center.
Standout Performance
Lavigne is the record’s MVP twice over — as a vocalist who refuses to pick a lane and as the writer of every song here. Bandcamp Daily called it exactly right: “Nuance is Ok Cowgirl’s greatest strength as a collective, never quite settling into a happy/sad binary.”
Why It’s Certified
“Rock N Roll Ruined My Life” opens with the thesis and a grin. “God Made A Farmer” and “Cruise The Town” are the widescreen middle. “Prepared To Lose” is where the ache finally wins, and “Suspended Disbelief” closes without tidying anything up. Americana Highways called it “a full-throttle rock record, road-ready to see the rest of America with unglazed eyes.” Ten songs, no filler, all horizon. Certified great.