There was, sadly, no way for Brandon Silveira to win "Nashville Star."  With his two-toned spiked hair and multiple earrings, he set the judges on all their ears because he just didn't "look like a Nashville Star."  It bothers me that so much of that show has been hinged on looks alone (which, as I recall, was Charlie Robison's biggest objection to eventual winner Buddy Jewell, although to be fair to Charlie, he was against the sameness he saw in Jewell), when, no matter what his hair looks like, Brandon Silveira's singing is aces.  I've heard it said many  times in the past few years that the reason country music sounds so pop is because this newest generation grew up "listening to all kinds of music."  I call that a lame copout at best, or a flat-out lie at worst.  It's obvious that Brandon has grown up listening to "all kinds of music."  But it doesn't stop his country music from actually sounding like COUNTRY.         

His influences are reflected by his sound.  At times his rich tenor sounds like he's channeling the ghost of Johnny Paycheck; at other times you can hear a little Sammy Kershaw; maybe there's a trace of Merle Haggard; perhaps you can hear a touch or two of George Jones.  One song, "Heaven Needs Angels" (duet with Anne Blythe), I swear to God, sounds a whole lot like a Garth Brooks melody in both arrangement and delivery.  That's not to say Brandon doesn't know himself or have his own sound, mind; it's just he knows where he came from, and he doesn't mind showing that off.  He wrote or helped write almost every song on the disc, showing there's skill there, too, and he's backed by some hot pickers.

To prove he can be just as punk as his hairstyle, hidden at the end of the very country final track, "Mistakes," there's a little bonus -- wait a few minutes past the end of the song and eventually you'll hear an encore presentation of "Beer Thirty."  Now, track #10, "Beer Thirty," is as country as a drinkin' song can get.  In contrast, the bonus reprise of the same sound sounds like Smash Mouth got a hold of it.  Awesome?  You bet.  It's obviously easy for this boy to keep his country and his rock separate, yet know how to deliver both equally well.

I enjoy listening to this disc.  That's really the bottom line.  It's as fun as country music can get.  Brandon Silveira kicks and stomps and plays, delivering a sound that is as pure and traditional as it can be, but also fresh and modern, positive proof that it is indeed possible to be both country and contemporary without being, well, pop.  I also get a big kick out of the disc's title, and all fans of "King of the Hill" know why.  He may not have won "Nashville Star," and that may be a shame, but let's hope radio will play his single, "Life Don't Get Much Better Than This," and we get to see a lot more of him.

Standout Tracks:  Pros:  Beer Thirty, Insane, Dusty Ol' Road

Last Word: The boy may not be right, but he's got the stuff.  He knows where his music came from, all the way from the roots to the leaves.

On the net:  http://www.brandonsilveira.com/

Kathy Coleman TakeCountryBack April 2004