Max Gomez certainly isn’t the first to bring together country, pop and folk influences, but he has done a noteworthy job of blending the three seemingly disparate genres for his debut. Like John Prine and Townes Van Zandt before him, Gomez succeeds where many others fail, by being able to turn out interesting lyrics. When you are backed by acoustic guitars and mellow drumming, you can’t hide a weak voice and rambling lyrics.
The 23-year-old Gomez has a veteran’s vocals, deep, clear and in charge and sounds exceptionally confident delivering the 10 songs that make up Rule The World. Whether he’s covering songs of regret (“Run from You,” or the absurdly catchy “Ball and Chain”) or longing (“True Blue” or “Never Say Never”), you can’t help by think you’re hearing the beginning of a career that’s likely to span into the next few decades.
If this first record is any indication, years from now, Gomez could be spoken in the same company as Prine, Van Zandt and Gram Parsons.
