Max Stalling – One Of The Ways
Max Stalling resides at the quieter, thoughtful, less cliche-ridden end of the much-ballyhooed “Texas Music” spectrum. On One Of The Ways, Stalling’s pairing with producer Bruce Robison proves an excellent one. No stranger to literate, highly personal songs, Robison is genuinely sympathetic to Stalling’s introspective musings and plaintive, arid voice.
Stalling is more in tune with the sounds of the heart and soul than of the highway and the honky-tonk. He manages to convincingly incorporate the French line from the Beatles’ “Michelle” into a country love song, then follow with a grisly tale of a cowboy drowning in a moss-slick cattle tank. On “Ain’t Falling In Love With You Tonight”, a portrait of a couple stranded in a small town, Stalling shows his ability to make sense of the unease and desperation common to his characters.
Among images of windmills, fence lines, drought and blistering sun, Stalling fills his songs with weathered men unsure of their ability to cohabitate and with women who deserve better. In his songs, a cloud or a shade tree is as valuable as money in the bank, while love and emotional contentment can be as elusive as coyotes running through the mesquite.