Comprised primarily of some electrified string play, delicate piano keys, a profoundly crisp beat and honeysweet vocals that have our attention from the start, Gary Burk III’s “Two Lane Airplane” isn’t the most fanciful country song I’ve heard in 2020. It isn’t featuring any grandiose fat on its bassline, nor does it have a sizzling lead guitar part that puts it into metallic, stadium-shaking territory. For the better part of its running time, “Two Lane Airplane” puts forth a simple concept for country melodicism, and in my opinion, this is exactly what makes it such a smart single and a brilliant addition to Burk’s discography.
As a songwriter, this Pennsylvanian has been steadily developing his own style since 2017’s “Crashed” and “Getaway Sticks,” and in this most recent look I think we get the best and most full-bodied peek into his artistry we’ve been afforded so far. He’s not afraid to be vulnerable with the audience, and no matter what you thought about his style before giving this song a listen, I believe you’re going to walk away from its beat feeling a little more intrigued by his sound than you were.
Beyond the vocal, the strings in “Two Lane Airplane” are the source the warmest elements in the harmony, and I don’t think there’s any understating just how important their melodic depth is to the interpretation of the lyrics here. Having an organic instrumental backbone is essentially what makes all-time hits iconic, and in this song, Gary Burk III is going out of his way to employ the natural hue of rhythm and rhyme without bringing anything synthetic into the mix. “Two Lane Airplane” is a very lyrically inspired track, but the tone through which it’s delivered to us by Burk himself is what truly defines the narrative of the song. He’s making it impossible for us to avoid the emotional haymakers he’s throwing in our direction via the groove, and whether it’s the poetry or the pulsation of the percussion, you’re going to feel something by the time this track has crossed over the finish line.
AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Two-Lane-Airplane-Gary-Burk/dp/B08DVHRP1C
Country fans who are need of a fresh fix from a verifiably indie songwriter would be wise to see what Gary Burk III is doing in “Two Lane Airplane” this summer, if for no other reason than to understand why the growing hype surrounding his professional work is only getting bigger by the year. 2020 has seen Burk releasing more music than he ever has before – four singles just since January, matching his total output from 2017 to 2019 – and if my gut is right, I’d say he’s prepping for a proper LP to drop a lot sooner than later. He’s got my endorsement, and it’s because of his putting tonality before production varnish (which is something that I wish I could say about some of his major label-backed peers in Nashville). There aren’t many puritans like him left, but that’s exactly why his sound is as appealing as it is this season.
Kim Muncie