All-Female Country Quintet Mustangs Of The West release their latest album Sea of Heartbreak from KZZ Music/Blue Élan Records. An emotional 12-song collection, the album takes listeners on a ride through the ups and downs of life lived out to its fullest– the heartache, the lessons learned, the reasons we keep going. Recorded the old fashioned way – a great band in a room, learning the songs as they go – it’s a showcase of deep musicianship and the magic of a band even greater than the sum of its parts.
After taking the LA “Cowpunk” scene by storm in the late ‘80s as simply “The Mustangs,” Sea of Heartbreak sees a new formation of the band, reuniting original members Suzanna Spring (vocals/guitar), Sherry Rayn Barnett (lead guitar/vocals), and Holly Montgomery (bass/vocals) while adding newcomers Aubrey Richmond (fiddle/vocals) and Suzanne Morissette Cruz (drums/vocals) to the sound.
Co-produced by KZZ Founder Kirk Pasich and Colin Devlin (The Devlins), Sea of Heartbreak mixes top-notch songcraft with a handful of heartfelt covers. Equally inspired by country-folk storytellers like Lucinda Williams as by the Southern California sound of Poco – who’s late Rusty Young is featured as a co-writer – the album creates the perfect soundscape for an introspective ride up I-5, ruminating on themes of loss and the love that arise from hardship and persistence.
Sea of Heartbreak is an album born of the serious musical experience these women share, an opportunity for a reunited band to show off their cohesion – but also explore their individual voices. While it’s Spring’s delicate, emotional tone that soars over the majority of the songs, the album also features lead vocals from Montgomery on the aching ballad “Anytime I Try,” Richmond on the powerful “Try, Try,” and Cruz on “Learning the Game,” a more intimate take on the Buddy Holly classic.
But when these women sing together, it’s the power of Mother Nature that you feel: the wind whipping through a desert night; the sound of the ocean calling in the distance. The sparkling guitar tones, the stirring interplay of the fiddle, and the driving groove add up to tales of experience and wisdom sung by women who have something to teach us all about love, life, compromise, and perseverance.
With touring dates and yet another album on the way this year, this incredible band now gets the chance to share its magic with the world.
Listen to Sea of Heartbreak HERE
Sea of Heartbreak Tracklist:
Heartbreak Overture
Sea of Heartbreak
Fiery Angel
We All Lose Sometimes
Anytime I Try
Crooked Road
Blue Rodeo
Some Blue Sky
Try, Try Again
Learning The Game
Precious To Me
Heartbreak Reprise
