Kacey Musgraves’ latest album, Deeper Well, invites listeners to travel to a peaceful mindset, where the grass just seems to be greener. Released on March 15, it marks Musgraves’ sixth studio album release. This album has more folk influences than her previous country-led albums, however, which makes it stand out. Journey with Musgraves into a world of self-discovery and healing, all through an earthy lens.
Musgraves started in the heart of the country world, influenced heavily by her Texas roots. Her first few albums, Same Trailer Different Park, Pageant Material, and Golden Hour, all have a heavy country-pop twang sound. Golden Hour even won Musgraves the Grammy for Album of the Year in 2019, which propelled her to the top of the country charts. Musgraves switched up her sound slightly for her second-latest project, Star-Crossed, which toys more with pop influences than country ones. Songs like “Justified” and “Camera Roll” off this album still hold up to the country-type sound, but overall, they are beat out by the additions of synth and electronic sounds on the other tracks.
When it comes to Deeper Well, Musgraves once again switches up her sound ever so slightly. The country sound is still present in many of the songs of this project, but this time folk seems to shine through more than pop.
The album starts with the track “Cardinal,” which is very much ’60s folk-inspired with the use of acoustic and electronic guitars, along with strums and grooves that feel very similar to a Fleetwood Mac or Beatles song. In this track, Musgraves seems to be having a conversation with a cardinal, asking it if she is being brought “a message from the other side” or if she’s “on somebody’s mind.” In popular culture, seeing a red cardinal can sometimes symbolize hope, joy, or other positive affirmations.
This folk-based sound follows Musgraves into the title track “Deeper Well,” but this time it transforms itself into something more mystical. There’s an introduction with synth and keyboard, which is used to create a watery-like sound that makes you feel like you’re standing right near the glittering well. In this song, she seemingly also starts to find answers to her previously mentioned questions. Like some other artists recently, such as Ariana Grande and SZA, Musgraves mentions the idea of her Saturn Return.
A person’s Saturn Return happens usually from the ages of 27 to 30, when Saturn makes one full orbit around the Sun. During this time, new responsibilities and discoveries emerge in a person’s life, which can prove to be a bit rocky. Throughout this track, Musgraves details how she uses her Saturn Return discoveries to “say goodbye to the people [she feels] are real good at wasting [her] time” because she “found a deeper well.”
Life discovery is a theme that greatly encapsulates this album, as seen in songs such as “The Architect” and “Sway.” Some more earthy imagery is heard in “The Architect,” with allusions to apples, mountains, clay, and canyons in terms of the grand scheme of life. Throughout the song, Musgraves asks if she can “speak to the architect” about all of life’s inconsistencies, and just like us, she casually wonders about the meaning of life.
One of my favorite songs when I listened to this album was “Sway.” The gentle guitar and acoustic beats in the background of this song make you truly feel so peaceful and light. In this song, Musgraves tackles how to handle the difficult parts of life, picturing how one day she “won’t break, just bend,” and she’ll “learn how to sway” in the wind.
The album ends with the sweet and slow track, “Nothing to Be Scared Of,” which is the perfect summary of all the themes that Musgraves travels through on this project. She talks about feeling comfortable and stable in a new relationship and reassures herself that “there’s nothing to be scared of.” She leaves listeners with some simple but wise advice: “If a train is meant for me, it won’t leave the station and pull away.” Very well said indeed!
Even with her Texas roots, Musgraves still perfectly ties together country and folk sounds to create a whole new force of nature. Healing might be a long process, but Musgraves reminds us throughout Deeper Well to sway in the wind and let the sunshine in.
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