Emily Nenni - “In The Mornin’”

SXSW 2023 - OEB Score: 7; Popularity Index: 3

Pairs Well With…Dolly Parton, Courtney Marie Andrews, Margo Price

Rolling through the honky tonk is Emily Nenni and her latest record On The Ranch, an album that emphasizes the timeless nature of pure country songwriting. Some ramblers and some criers, On The Ranch sounds exactly like you’d expect in the best of ways. Slide guitars, foot-stomping percussion, and shufflin’ guitars lay the bed for Nenni’s smoky Southern vocal, a fine mix that is right in between a clean and gritty tone. As seems to be tradition now, New West Records is taking over Mohawk to close out SXSW on Saturday as Nenni joins a wicked Americana lineup including Robert Ellis and Sunny War. (Kevin McStravick)

2022 Review: It’s a nearly perfect country song in structure, theme, chorus, and vocals. The opening lines establish a traditional renegade country theme: “I didn't take the easy road. Oh, I couldn't find it. So, I took one of my own.” Nenni then acknowledges that things haven’t quite worked out for her yet, but unlike the classic drunken regret tune, the chorus proclaims that she “ain't worried, I'm playing the long game.” Nenni’s voice, young, tender, and strong, makes you believe that she believes. The rest of her developing catalogue is made up of in-the-pocket country rambles ("Messin’ With Me”), honkytonk (“Bad News (By no Means”)), and ballads (“If This is Just a Game”).