Today on the recommendation of a friend of mine I listened to an artist called MJ Lenderman.

Entirely coincidentally I had seen this album called Manning Fireworks pop up in a few year-end lists at the end of 2024, and I threw it into the listening pile of 2020s albums to check out weekly as part of an ongoing project. Then last week someone recommended I check out MJ Lenderman, and now we're here.

This album was...a lot more country than I expected. There are very few genres of music I will outright write off as "I don't like this", but unfortunately a lot of modern country falls into that. Not for lack of trying; I've had my fair share of exposure to those incredibly basic songs about trucks and beer and the objectification of women, and shockingly enough I just can't seem to get behind these things.

Manning Fireworks wasn't that though. It definitely has the same sort of twang as most country, and I do think most people who do like modern "bro country" would like this too. It's not trying to deliver any challenges to their beliefs, at least. It's got some nice allusions to older country as well: the most noticeable to me is the track "You Don't Know the Shape I'm In", which very clearly calls back to The Band's song "The Shape I'm In", an artist and track that I do love. So I think this album knows it's not really in the same vein as a lot of the country coming out today, and I for one appreciate that.

However, and this is more of a personal problem, I still am having a hard time separating this from the notions I already have about what today's country sounds like. Stereotyping is bad and all sure but that doesn't mean we don't build it up subconsciously anyways. But I'm glad to have this album challenge those notions of mine a little bit, even if said notions are still holding strong.

This has mostly been rambling on the idea of this album rather than the music itself. The music is... fine I guess? I don't really feel strongly about it. I guess that's why I've waffled so much. I do like it though, and I think I could like it more upon revisiting it. Although I'm pretty bad at revisiting albums, so jury's out as to whether that will actually happen any time soon.

Pretty solid music in the end. I can recommend this to others who have the problem of a knee-jerk reaction to the word "country" where it relates to music. Maybe it'll help you too. Or not, who am I to say.