Nashville-based singer/songwriter Ali Sperry has released “Excuses,” the latest from her forthcoming LP In Front Of Us, due out on March 11th. “In keeping with the archetypal characters in this record, ‘Excuses’ centers around the person who you want to give the benefit of the doubt to but repeatedly lets you down, a person that makes a mess and holds no accountability,” says Sperry of the track. “As I continued to tease out the lyrics to the second verse, I found myself picturing our then president and wondering whether in his quietest moments he was ever able to experience the weight of the harm he was doing.” 

With Owen Biddle on bass, Jen Gunderman on keys, Kai Welch on synth, and Sadler Vaden’s rip-roaring guitar, Sperry was able to explore a broader palette of colors, and channel into the music some of the innate anger that comes with being human. “Excuses” follows the release of album track “In Your Dreams,” a mantra-driven exploration of the importance of being our most authentic selves, and lead single “Cool Under Pressure,” a  celebration of women as leaders and inspired by watching Kamala Harris in the 2020 Vice Presidential Debate.

With In Front Of Us, Sperry wisely avoids long-form folk indulgence for streamlined contours and razor hooks that feel more rock/pop than folk, and are fairly begging for a decent car stereo and an open road. In her singing and writing, she is the people’s champ of the “less is more” ethos. There is a slight echo of Laurel Canyon in the sonics of the record, and, always, the confident under-singing of a woman who knows her words and melodies will happily do the heavy lifting. 

The album also features an absolute murderers’ row of beloved Nashville players, including Jen Gunderman, Audley Freed, Sadler Vaden, Joe Pisapia, Owen Biddle, Kai Welch, Kristin Weber, Rich Hinman, and a slew of other bright lights. It’s a testament to both their instincts and their respect for Sperry’s presence and voice, that it never feels like a cavalcade of assembled star-turns, but a real love-in of massively talented musical souls.

Photo Courtesy: Fairlight Hubbard