GRAMMY Award winner Ashley McBryde has made a name for herself with her standout, critically acclaimed albums, all of which found the Arkansas native straddling lines between traditional country, rock-tinged roots and point-blank biker-bar riffs, leading American Songwriter to boast her “music balances gutsy rocking with classic country, folk and even slight bluegrass influences.” With The Devil I Know, set for release Sept. 8 via Warner Music Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry member and her band Deadhorse honed in and sharpened what it is they do best.
“When it was time to put together The Devil I Know, my band and I did what we always do: got together in the purple building in East Nashville, played through a bunch of songs and discussed where we wanted it to go,” shares McBryde. “We decided to take all the things that people tend to give us a hard time for and turn it up.
“‘Y’all are too country.’ We leaned into that – more country it is. ‘Y’all are awfully rock leaning for a country artist.’ Is that so? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet. ‘Last thing y’all need is another tender, finger pickin’ song.’ Oh? Tender makes you uneasy, cowboy? I hear you. Let’s see how much more tender we can be. We listened to all those opinions and said, ‘I hear you. I understand what you’re saying.’ But sadly, there’s no room on the record for your opinion. We’ll do what we want.”
Accompanying today’s announcement is the release of “Learned To Lie,” a striking example of McBryde’s songwriting vulnerability:
I traced it back to a couple months before I was born
Must’ve heard my momma tell my daddy
That she was tired ’cause babies make you tired
But deep down she was just unhappy
I think my father did the best that he could do
He rarely made it to the dinner table
Said he was working late, but he was working late
Fogging up the windows of an ’89 Sable
I, I learned to cry
Quietly I learned to pray
Silently inside a house where the devil played
And I hate that it runs in my blood
I hate how easy it comes
I wish I’d learned how to love the same way I
Learned to lie
“‘Learned to Lie’ was a hard one; I wrote it with Sean McConnell and Nicolette Hayford,” McBryde reflects. “After it was written, I called my mom to let her know that I had told a little bit more of our story as a family. I said, ‘It’s going to be hard to hear, but none of it is untrue.’”
McBryde’s truth-telling is delivered a little softer in current chart-climbing single “Light On In The Kitchen” that The New York Times praised, “Ashley McBryde maintains her position as country’s most down-to-earth songwriter,” while the title track “The Devil I Know” showcases her aptitude for turning it up, with Stereogum sharing the song “starts out quiet and acoustic before flaring up into a big Southern-rock chorus with a blast of distorted riffage.”
Tonight, McBryde performs at the BackCountry Festival in Gardnerville, Nevada before returning to Nashville for CMA Fest’s 50th Anniversary at Nissan Stadium next week. McBryde will be on the road throughout the spring and summer for a slew of headlining and festival shows along with tour dates with Eric Church and Jelly Roll. For additional details and to purchase tickets, visit AshleyMcBryde.com.
The Devil I Know Track List:
- Made For This (Ashley McBryde and Travis Meadows)
- Coldest Beer in Town (Ashley McBryde, Autumn McEntire and Nicolette Hayford)
- Light On In The Kitchen (Ashley McBryde, Jessi Alexander and Connie Harrington)
- Women Ain’t Whiskey (Ashley McBryde, Hillary Lindsey, Jon Nite and Chris LaCorte)
- Learned To Lie (Ashley McBryde, Nicolette Hayford and Sean McConnell)
- The Devil I Know (Ashley McBryde, Jeremy Stover and Bobby Pinson)
- Single At The Same Time (Ashley McBryde, Benjy Davis and Andy Albert)
- Cool Little Bars (Ashley McBryde, Trick Savage and Lainey Wilson)
- Whiskey and Country Music (Ashley McBryde, John Osborne and Lee Thomas Miller)
- Blackout Betty (Ashley McBryde, Aaron Raitiere and Nicolette Hayford)
- 6th Of October (Ashley McBryde, Blue Foley and CJ Field)
