Oliver Tree - Cowboy Tears: Drown the World in a Swimming Pool of Sorrow (Deluxe) (2020) Hi-Res

If you just heard Oliver Tree on the radio or online, you'd pick up on his influences, bringing together '90s/2000s pop-punk, grunge, and Brit-pop influences. However, if you've seen his satirical high-concept music videos you know he pairs his often straight-forward and earnestly delivered singer/songwriter anthems with an over-the-top image replete with nerdy bowl-mullet haircut, tiny sunglasses, and what clearly looks like his head CGI'd onto another person's body. All of which means that Tree is equal parts pop singer and performance artist. It's an intriguing contrast he further pushes on his sophomore album, 2022's country-tinged Cowboy Tears. While nothing here is full-on country music, there are enough twangy acoustic guitars, as well as allusions to wagon wheels and broken hearts that make it feel, at the very least, like a knowing pastiche. If Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" was a hip-hop look at country, think of this as a SoCal emo-punk take on the genre. There's a deliberate nostalgia to Cowboy Tears, as if Tree is crafting sad songs for people who once snubbed Faith Hill and Tim McGraw in favor of blink-182 and now find themselves looking back with an odd fondness for both.