HARPER GRACE

                                                               "Down In My Hometown" 

                                                                Curb Records

Everybody has a story to tell and some sort of negative scenario in our past that holds tightly to us like an anchor if we allow it to. However, the best way overcome it and metaphorically break the chains is to face it head on.

For country starlet Harper Grace that anchor’s been a moment from her childhood that millions saw, commented on, and ridiculed; a moment that should have been such an incredible achievement and great memory for her that quickly went sideways when she performed a rendition of our National Anthem that has gone into lore as one of the worst versions of all time.

Facing her anchor with her last single “Oh Say Can You See,” Harper secured the final piece to her moving on puzzle, closing that chapter of her life while letting go and no longer allowing that one moment to hold her any longer. 

While that song, along with her debut single “Sparkle,” have both introduced the rising talent in very solid, defining ways, her newest single “Down In My Hometown” stands poised and ready to be the one that truly breaks her through and sets her path in fast-motion as she opens her exciting next chapter.

She immediately captures the listeners attention through the addictively catchy melody of the summery vibe bop, and while she takes us on a journey to her hometown, she perfectly paints the picture of it so loosely that it becomes reminiscent of Anywhere USA and all the small towns like so many of us grew up in, giving this an instant relatability factor.

With her sugary sweet drawl and infectious phrasing, Harper lists the attributes that make up her hometown throughout the first verse, describing it as a place that lives for Friday night lights, has streets littered with big trucks, and bumps Tim McGraw music; masterfully sliding away from the typical artist namecheck to instead cleverly state, “down in my hometown we’re bumpin’ barbeque stain on white t-shirt.”

Likewise, the second verse continues to be descriptive of her hometown attributes, though focused more so on the attitude of the people who inhabit it with lines such as, “we’re all heaven bound even though we love a little hell raisin’” and “bunch of hard-earned aces, troublemakers, slippin through barbed wire to start a bonfire.”

The anathematic chorus certainly gets your fist pumping as you sing along with her while she amps up the visuals of a small-town party atmosphere, however, the effective use of the bridge is where she absolutely connects her small town with that of the listener’s, raising a toast through the speakers as she encourages us to all come together as one big happy little small-town family; “Raise your glass to the ceiling, ‘til we get that good kinda feeling.”

Harper Grace has been carving out her name with high profile songwriter rounds in Nashville over the past few years, reinviting herself through her songwriting as she faced some of those past demons. “Down In My Hometown” carries a natural progression to it that fits her just right as she turns the page; It’s her overcoming party if you will, that we’re all lucky enough to have an invite to.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

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