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As her catalog of Country hits continues to grow, Ashley Puckett releases her first self-penned single Tequila. An introspective piece diving into the theme of drowning one’s sorrows in alcohol or looking to the bottle for inspiration, courage, or acceptance. Couple this with a familiar Country melody and we have an easily accessible piece of music that leaves audiences entertained yet challenged at the same time. As Ashley Puckett dives deep into metaphor and imagery to cast her narrative, casual listeners will be taken off guard by the deep and insightful symbolism behind many of the lyrics. “At the bottom of the glass, and you haven’t said a word, oh tequila why aren’t you listening?” The revolving unanswered questions we ask the things that are meant to give us answers in our own naive perspective is what ties the theme of this track together so effectively. “Shot after shot, I’ve even tried it on the rocks, but you’re not listening.” Ashley Puckett who is normally a higher-range soprano chooses to drop her register down for this track to add to the serene and penetrating subject matter. This lower key mezzo-soprano vocal stays beautifully within the register with the occasional jump up an octave to resolve a cadence before returning the listener back to a grounded center. The melodies which accompany this narrative also add a call-and-response style to the lyrics while the main groove helps the melody continue to grow momentum before the crescendo where the chorus section is repeated to drive her point home.
With thousands of streams since the October release, Tequila is set to join the other half million streams of Ashley’s previous singles, such as: Live Like You Love, Whats Her Name, and Bulletproof. This helps secure Ashley Puckett into the Country music limelight as the market surely has to take notice of these formidable numbers and the talents which coincide with them. The production of Tequila is professional, and very well-executed. The vocals are able to be heard clearly over the accompanying instrumentation, while the main beat is easy to tap your foot to and get lost in the groove. Each higher frequency note blends well with the vocals allowing this song to be played at high volumes without unwanted noise or distortion. This is handy as many Country clubs should be eager to make this a mainstay track in their playlists. Personally, Tequila is a very enjoyable track, one which demands many listens, of which I am more than willing to do, as Tequila makes a great driving song, and perfectly accompanies every other track within my favorite Country songs.
