album review

The Whiskey Charmers “On The Run” – Print Review in Lust for Life Magazine (Leading Dutch National Music Mag) – 12/17/22

December 20, 2022 — Leave a comment

(Translated from Dutch)

Singer/guitarist Carrie Shepard and guitarist Lawrence Daversa hail from Detroit and together form The Whiskey Charmers, a duo that draws inspiration from the alternative country variant. Music that leans heavily on indie pop, but which still has an unmistakable country feeling. Carrie and  Lawrence have already released three albums, but On The Run is my first introduction to the music of these passionate musicians. They write beautiful songs with a melancholic undertone and witty lyrics.

Carrie seems to have a penchant for wide-brimmed stetsons and fancy cowboy boots, but she’s anything but a classic country singer. All the talents of this remarkable duo seem to come together in The Devil’s Rodeo: a touching love song, almost a country martyr, in which Daversa split the stars from heaven with his guitar. As far as I’m concerned, the great strength of The Whiskey Charmers lies in these kinds of simple songs. And with that, the two do add something to the alternative country genre

-Harry De Jong – Lust for Life Magazine 12/17/22

Album Review – The New York Daily

August 21, 2017 — Leave a comment

Many thanks to The New York Daily for the great review of our new album! Excerpts below. You can read the full review here.

“…Dark country band the Whiskey Charmers made a big splash with their 2015 debut album. Their new one, The Valley – streaming at Bandcamp – takes their Lynchian twang and shuffle and raises the energy: this is much more of a blue-flame electric rock record…. “Been looking for you lately on my lawn…been looking for you in the back of my car,” Shepard muses in the swaying, melancholy Red Wine. The album’s most epic track is Coal, a majestically gloomy, metaphorically bristling anthem that could be the Dream Syndicate at their countriest, capped off by a searing, careening Daversa solo. The album winds up with Warnings, an Americana-pop song in Halloween disguise. You have been warned: this band is going places. Catch them now before it costs you big bucks at a venue like Bowery Ballroom.” – The New York Music Daily, August 18, 2017

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The Horn!

October 10, 2015 — Leave a comment

Many thanks to The Horn in Austin, Texas for the short and sweet review of our album! Full link here.

“With a band name like the Whiskey Charmers, you may half expect to hear a group of rowdy young Irish guys, but definitely not the soothing voice of Carrie Shepard, one half of the duo that also includes Lawrence Daversa. Their self-titled debut finds the Detroit twosome playing soft Americana with a country twang, and it’s every bit as understated and beautiful as can be. Smooth and dark, like whiskey itself, Shepard and Daversa combine bluesy guitar riffs with subdued harmonies and a bit of an old fashioned soul. “Vampire” is mysterious with just the right amount of menace, and “Neon Motel Room” is mischievous and bright. Shepard’s vocals are so complemented by Daversa’s fiery electric guitar playing, adding a haunting dimension to something that might otherwise be light and pretty.”

– Maeri Ferguson, The Horn – October 8, 2015

For the Country Record Review!

August 13, 2015 — Leave a comment

Many thanks to Vickye Fisher at For the Country Record for the great review of our album! You can read the full review here.

“If you were wondering where the roots and grit of country music had gone, you’ll find it in this album. There is a fulfilling darkness and aching quality about this record that falls in line with the genre at its best.” – Vickye Fisher, For the Country Record 8/11/15

Country Perspective Album Review!

July 13, 2015 — Leave a comment

Many thanks to Country Perspective for supporting our music and for the wonderful review of our album!

Click here for the full review on Country Perspective – July 11, 2015

“For the second time this year, we’ve got a fantastic album from an alt-country act out of Detroit (Whitey Morgan was the other). I don’t think The Whiskey Charmers could produce a much better debut album than this. Carrie Shepard is a very talented vocalist who could sing pretty much whatever she wants, while Lawrence Daversa dazzles me with his guitar play. It’s makes for a perfect combination. These two were made to make music with each other. ” – Country Perspective – July 11, 2015″

Rock and Roll Junkie Review!

July 3, 2015 — 5 Comments

Many thanks to Rock and Roll Junkie for the amazing review! It is a thoroughly entertaining read, and we very much appreciate the kind words!

Click here for the full review on Rock and Roll Junkie – July 3, 2015

“The twang of both the guitar and the voice takes me to a swampy place I want to lie down and die in. Again, it’s making me happier than I have been in a while. To feel the agony in music is to feel what it is to be alive. When music can make you feel alive, then it is doing the job of saints. The Whiskey Charmers bring that dark, brooding sense you get when you enter a scary motel for the first time. This sound makes you want to drink more whiskey, even though you know full well it’s the worst idea you’ve had all night. The vocals of Carrie Shepard cut at you like a swiping switch-blade, yet rock you to sleep at the same time. The cutting guitar riffage from Lawrence Daversa walks you down a foggy beach only to find a bloody plane crash at its reaches. You feel the pain. You want to feel the pain. The pain has you flipping the record over and over so you can get at more of it.” – Rock and Roll Junkie – July 3, 2015

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