Time Machine
Self-Released, 2021
9/10
As if assembling a record during the onset of Covid wasn’t hard enough, the Nashville songstress Kashena Sampson saw the funding for her music, her job, decimated by a tornado as well. The resilient artist forged on, and with the help of producer Jon Estes, who plays bass, piano, cell and organ here, Time Machine presents us some forthright and genuine songs from a very talented singer-songwriter.
“Hello Darkness” starts the listen with a richly textured version of Americana and country as Sampson’s expressive and soaring pipes guide the very warm Shocking Blue cover, and “Alone And In Love Again” follows with a calmer spirit of poetic song craft that flows with a soothing folk quality.
Deeper into the listen, the graceful piano of “Time Machine” finds itself in ballad territory as Sampson’s storytelling is both thoughtful and eloquent, while “Little Spot Of Sun” recruits playful drumming amid the bouncy climate that displays Jeremy Fetzer’s fluid guitar playing. “Old Bones”, a standout tune, then gets quite soulful as the plucked bass makes an impression alongside Sampson’s gorgeous singing.
“The Black Sea” And “Work Of Art” exit the listen, where the former gets a bit darker in a dreamy, mysterious sort of way that’s quite atmospheric, even cinematic, and the latter resides in timeless folk sounds, where ‘70s nods won’t go unnoticed or unappreciated.
A songstress who embraces all the hallmarks of country, folk, and Americana that we all adore, Sampson’s songs resonate with much sincerity and her striking vocals sure do make each track here worth many listens. If this is the next household name to come from Nashville, I certainly won’t be surprised.
Travels well with: Bandits On The Run- Now Is The Time; Ana Egge- Between Us