Written by Taylor Gabrovic

Graphic by Rebekah Witt

In her new album, Deeper Well, Kacey Musgraves walks the fine line between cohesive and monotonous but successfully and beautifully avoids the latter. With its folk-inspired, meditative lyrics and production, the album feels like an older, more mature sister to Musgraves’ critically acclaimed 2018 album, Golden Hour. Despite the similarities between the albums, fans looking for another song like “High Horse” will not find that on Deeper Well. Over the years, Musgraves has proven her ability to adapt and transform her unique sound, which plays off multi-genre inspirations and brushes off the constraints of traditional country music. Her fifth studio album is a clear continuation of that growth.

Despite and in part due to her crossing of genre lines, Musgraves has one of the most loyal and enthusiastic fan bases of today since launching her career over a decade ago. Whether supporting her online via social media, purchasing multiple copies of her albums, or attending her tours and events, her fans will always be there. One may ask, what about Musgraves fosters such devotion? Well, according to a fan of ten years, Malorie Walker, some factors are her authenticity, her adoration for her fans, and her music’s ability to bring people together. Another fan, Courtney Faust, who has been a fan of Musgraves for nine years, said, “I am consistently moved by her (Musgraves’) music, but I also admire her for how she chooses to use her voice outside her songs. She was a vocal LGBTQ+ advocate early in her career when there were only a small number of artists willing to do that. She's used her voice for women's rights, and her sense of humor on social media when approached by critics is not only funny but admirable. Recently, her use of fan art on her merchandise was just another bullet point in a long list of reasons why she stands out among her peers.” Musgraves will see her devoted fans on the road later this year when she embarks on the Deeper Well World Tour.

There are fourteen songs on the album, but Musgraves narrowed that number down from a whopping 114. Every song was recorded at New York City’s famous Electric Lady Studios, founded in 1970 by the legendary Jimi Hendrix. It is rather intriguing that such a cottagecore, earthy album could be recorded in a busy, concrete-filled metropolis. However, Musgraves told Vogue, “I found it strangely easy to tap into the blank canvas in my mind there, with so much, like, outside stimuli—being in that white studio, but overlooking the busy street below.”

Photo courtesy of Kelly Christine Sutton

The album's opening song, “Cardinal,” is a beautiful, reflective, folk-inspired, somewhat psychedelic song about loss and grief. The title track for the album, “Deeper Well,” falls second on the tracklist. Musgraves sings of Saturn’s return, interestingly similar to Ariana Grande’s eternal sunshine, released one week earlier to Deeper Well. She also sings of her marijuana journey and her decision to get rid of the habits and people that she feels are “real good at wasting” her time. While discussing the track with Vogue, Musgraves said, “I think it can be really easy just to live your life in the shallow end and it takes courage and bravery to swim out to the deeper end, and get to know yourself better and the people around you better. I’m just in a phase where I would personally rather have less around me, but deeper. Does that make sense?”

Next comes the second single from the album, “Too Good To Be True,” where Musgraves rawly explores the fear of giving everything to someone who ends up being ‘too good to be true.’ The fourth track, “Moving Out,” is a stripped-back, Golden Hour-sounding emotional song with stunning vocals. “Giver / Taker” calls back to the album’s title track, where Musgraves sings, ‘There’s two kinds of people, one is a giver/And one’s always tryin’ to take / All they can take.’

The sixth track, “Sway,” is a current fan favorite. When asked why “Sway” was her favorite track, Courtney Faust said: “Sometimes I feel like at 35, I should have my act together a little better. This song really made me feel less alone in my feelings of just wishing I could just be ‘easy’ and go with the flow. It also doesn't help that my partner is the type of person who isn't shaken by anything. I lean on him so often to ground myself, so I truly felt like Kacey was looking through the window of my own life when I was listening to Sway.”

“Dinner With Friends” is a stunning acoustic guitar and piano track in which Musgraves lists the things she ‘would miss from the other side.’ The track is also where Musgraves reminds listeners of her political beliefs and progressive values, “My home state of Texas, the sky there and horse and dogs, but none of their laws.” That lyric is an evolution of what Musgraves first infused into her debut album, Same Trailer Different Park, and part of what fans have come to love about Musgraves: her unwillingness to shy away from challenging the “traditional values” of country music.

Lucky track seven, “Heart of the Woods,” is infused with relaxing finger-picked guitar and subtle banjo. Musgraves shared with Vogue that the track “is an ode to her new home deep in a Tennessee forest.” The next track, “Jade Green,” perfectly fits the ethereal wellness themes of the album without being too cliché. “The Architect” is a beautiful contemplation and questioning of existence, creation, and a higher power. Musgraves begins by questioning the creation of an apple, and then the song culminates by examining the creation of herself and humanity: “Is it thought out at all, or just paint on a wall?/Is there anything you regret?/I don’t understand, are there blueprints or plans? Can I speak to the architect?”

The Deeper Well track, which is most reminiscent of Musgraves’ 2021 album, star-crossed, is “Lonely Millionaire.” Its production is more pop-inspired than the other tracks on the album, yet it still somehow fits. It is inspired by JID’s “Kody Blu 31,” so much so that JID received songwriting credits on the track. For “Heaven Is,” Musgraves utilizes a gorgeous melody from an ancient Scottish folk song, “Ca’ The Yowes.” The production, Kacey’s vocals, and the recycled melody create what feels like a folk song that people will still be singing around the fire 300 years from now.

Another fan-favorite track is “Anime Eyes.” Ashley Hall, who has been a fan of Musgraves since 2017, shared that she looks forward to scream-singing the song’s bridge (“When I look at you, I’m always looking through anime eyes) back to Musgraves at the Deeper Well World Tour. Much like “Deeper Well,” this song risks dating itself with its allusions to pop culture and “bad energy” in the future, but perhaps that makes both songs enjoyable now. The album’s closing track, “Nothing to be Scared Of,” ends the reflective album on an inspirational note, one where no matter how bad the previous heartbreak or experience, there’s no reason to be afraid to try again or start something new.

Within Deeper Well, Musgraves shows mastery of the art of universality in songwriting. While some may know the backstory or some of the details in her personal life that inspired some of the tracks or lyrics, it is unnecessary. At some level, whether small or large, every song on the album has relatability, even “Lonely Millionaire,” even though most listeners aren’t millionaires. The album also clearly shows Musgraves’ ability to transport her listeners through her music. Deeper Well’s forty-two-minute journey is best listened to from start to finish and will leave listeners feeling like they are living out their cottagecore dreams in the Scottish highlands.

Kacey Musgraves’ "Deeper Well" Isn’t Too Good To Be True

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