The Best Around – Didn’t Come Here to Count ‘Em (2022)
The Best Around blends alt-country structures with a wall of infectious jazzy sound as they get us dancing to the tale of ‘Didn’t Come Here to Count ‘Em’. Taking us on the journey of a bender by a light-hearted person, the single is packed with an energy that raises the roof before exploding in the climactic ending that is sure to get you rocking out. With the guest drum and percussion help of Ian Romano, the band pumps out a rowdy, infectious and ingenious take on alt-country.
This raucous fusion of sound comes from the musical brains of Todd Pruner, Jon Merz and Camron Rushin who together make up the self-proclaimed ‘cosmic honky-tonk big band’. Born from the pandemic, the band conformed with social distancing when they started recording together with little instruction about the tracks being made. The freedom of their collaboration is infused into their music and brings a breath of fresh air to the sound.
‘Didn’t Come Here to Count ‘Em’ hits you with a toe-tapping rhythm from the first note. There is a great jangle to the guitar that makes you want to move while the drums tap against your ribcage. It is a truly infectious melody that catches you in its web from the first note and only enthrals you more as the horns make their way through the soundscape. The horns on the chorus really take everything to another level of fun and good vibes. It is almost impossible to stop some part of your body moving to the melody whether it is your head bopping away or your feet tapping. In the latter parts of the track, the melody leads you to the climatic end which is a blast of instrumentation that has you rocking out and going a little crazy. It also makes you want to turn the volume up as high as possible without a care for what anyone has to say.
While you are getting down to the melodic fusion of alt-country and jazzy rock, Rushin’s vocals shine with a touch of country. Through his performance, you can hear the edge of honky-tonk to the band’s sound, but this is tempered by a smooth light-hearted tale. The verses of the single lay out the journey of a bender and the people who are questioning just how much he has had to drink. The chorus is a wonderful response to the questioning that you want to sing along to. It is a really fun track that you can easily get lost in while having an absolute blast to the sound.
With an infectious sound and light-hearted tale of a bender, The Best Around get you rocking out to their energetic tones in ‘Didn’t Come Here to Count ‘Em’. Each note of the melody has been designed to get you moving while the vocals draw you into the light-hearted tale. The jazzy rock vibes of the song bolster the fun of the lyrics and the response to certain questions in the chorus.
Find out more about The Best Around on their website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
