Happy birthday to Colter Wall’s Imaginary Appalachia.
Yesterday, June 2nd, Colter Wall‘s debut record turned ten years old. It’s hard to believe that this album is already a decade old, given that the songs are still fresh, the storytelling is compelling, and the sound is more in line with what is being released in the country music space today. It’s a true testament that Colter Wall, who was just 19 years old at the time, was miles ahead of other country artists of his age, returning to the traditional roots of the country genre.
At a time when bro country was at its peak, Wall carved a different path, curating a sound that was authentically all his own.
I can vividly recall first discovering Colter Wall with the release of the Original 16 Brewery Sessions, which came out two years after the record’s release. On my TV screen was a scrawny Canadian cowboy kid, but what came out of his mouth was far from that. A voice I would have never imagined came out of that body and boomed through the room, leaving my jaw on the floor. But in the same breath, I was so captivated by the richness of his tone and the depth of his storytelling that I could not look away.
Many of us discovered Colter Wall with these Brewery Sessions, and I know I’m not the only one who had this kind of reaction. But ironically enough, Colter himself actually grew to hate them. In a series of since-deleted tweets from back in 2020, he confessed that the forced vocals made him cringe, but he was thankful that they helped put him on the map:
“I’m glad folks still enjoy those brewery sessions from 2015. I can’t watch them without cringing. The vocals are very forced. I’m grateful for what their popularity has done for me, but I hope folks are able to accept that I simply don’t play/sing that way anymore. Don’t get me started on the kick drum…”
But I love the kick drum…
These days, Colter doesn’t have quite the same amount of grit in his vocals, but the phenomenal storytelling, the rich baritone, and beautiful way in which he can paint a picture of life in the plains places him in a league of his own. A man who talks the talk and walks the walk.
In honor of the 10th anniversary of this timeless album, I thought it would be fun to go through and rank the short tracklist. I have to admit this task was much more challenging than I expected it to be. Given that the seven songs composing the EP are all heavy hitters, with not a single filler track, it is hard to place one at the bottom of the list. (Cough cough, take notes, Morgan Wallen.)
So, without further ado, here are my rankings for Imaginary Appalachia.
7. “Living On The Sand”
6. “Ballad Of A Law Abiding Sophisticate”
5. “Johnny Boy’s Bones (feat. The Dead South)”
4. “Nothin'”
3. “The Devil Wears A Suit and Tie”
2. “Caroline (feat. Belle Plaine)”
1. “Sleeping On The Blacktop”
Positions one and two could switch up depending on my mood, and as I said earlier, this was a very challenging list to compose given the strength of each song featured on the tracklist.
Imaginary Appalachia is truly a timeless record. Cheers to celebrating this record for many more decades to come.
