Did Oliver Anthony start a trend? Possibly. Or maybe he caught onto something that was already in the water... musicians who are making a return to a rural ethic & style that repudiates amoral urban lifestyles.
At least that's my take.
Jesse Welles is getting a bit of a bump here, as he is being discovered online more now, but other artists like the rapper Samson, John Rich, and Five Times August (who we've mentioned before, here and here) are also moving in this tradition.
What sets his stuff apart for me was, firstly, this tune about the attempted Assassination of Trump, called appropriately "Assassination Attempt."
Watch here.
I'd have just ignored many of these as copycats but this really isn't true. Jesse has a unique style, along with his gravel voice, more satisfying than most gruff voices due to his simultaneous youthful energy, making it seem like divine fate. Or maybe he smoked too many bum cigarettes in between public school classes that taught him how to dismiss the establishment like an illegitimate father-in-law's house rules.
Ok, ok, he's not that young, but he is "small of stature." Either way, what really stands out as you watch his other work is the feverish frequency with which he is releasing tunes, along with their consistent quality. In that way, he may be following in Oliver Anthony's footsteps. Soon we may be seeing him release cryptic videos on his Instagram like Anthony, telling us he is not selling out... again.
No. I think not. It feels like this guy has far less to prove than Oliver. And far less people rooting for his future.
He even put out a song that created some controversy because Benny Johnson pointed out the implied political implications of the body positivity crowd who might find this song objectionable. It's called "Fat" but I'm not seeing anyone get offended at it, though.
It could be a moderately good sign for America.
Listen to the song and Benny talk about it here.
He's got so many incredible ones that always seem to skirt around and through political issues effortlessly, while not revealing what side he's on.
Absolute brilliance.
This kind of energy could make him twice the star of Oliver. Nothing to prove and only good music in his future. Nobody would blame him if he sold out sixteen times and put out a few dud albums. It just gets better and better from here.
People just want to listen and just want the vibes to wash over them.
From contemplative abstractions, to social commentary, to love songs, his songwriting continues to surprise. Listen to more of his tunes here.
Here's one about Joe Biden
Independence Day
And guess what? It don't take long before you discover he's gone from fairly decent (yet, sometimes mediocre) hard rock band called Welles to this style more in line with the new witty protest folk music that we need so much today.
Welles plays a pretty great rock 'n' roll, but I think his talents are sharper now, and the stripped bare singer-songwriter ethic suits him better, in my view.
Check out his rocker band Welles down below!
Who knows, maybe you prefer this classic rock outfit, rather than his backwards glance into sixties social commentary. But I'm such a big Dylan fan that I prefer the stripped down conscience of a man a with guitar.
.....
Did you enjoy learning about Jesse Welles? Which songs of his do you prefer? Do you prefer him to Oliver Anthony or visa versa? Let us know your thoughts down below (with subscription) or on our socials!
