REVIEW: Casey Ahern “Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” (Single)
Riding the wave produced by a gentle groove, Casey Ahern doesn’t sound like a woman with a care in the world in her new single “Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” — despite the melancholy-stained lyrics, her attitude is uplifting and arguably more chipper than the narrative even calls for. There’s something gorgeous about the way she harmonizes with the strings in this track, and although I’ve heard her move melodic mountains without having to exert a lot of effort in other songs like “Just a Dance” and “He Was Summer,” she seems even more on-point in this most recent release than I would have initially thought her capable of. This is quality country/pop, and it’s coming from a singer/songwriter the underground can’t seem to stop talking about.
MORE ON CASEY AHERN: https://www.caseyahern.com/
As we move along into the chorus of this single, it becomes obvious that straddling a sexy rhythm wasn’t the only thing on Ahern’s mind when she was penning this recent studio wonder. Her vocal is slick and richly toned, but these strings are connecting with each other in such a fashion that I think we’re supposed to acknowledge their rock n’ roll energy more than we are any of the virtuosic melodies they’re subtly putting together in the background. I like the presence of the guitars and the underlying physicality they have to offer in this instance, and their rock-inspired textures are definitely something that makes me think about Casey Ahern’s multidimensionality in a way I hadn’t prior to hearing “Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” for the first time today.
CHECK OUT THE SINGLE: https://open.spotify.com/album/4yDKnXuj9mfO3o3W85HWWs?highlight=spotify:track:5Zf7lFpgUoUDTabOxBMe1K
Typically, this is a singer/songwriter we can count on for delivering a more streamlined style of poetry in her work, but I don’t mind her getting a little more elaborate with her prose for this song at all. Contrary to what a lot of her peers in the Nashville establishment would have done, Ahern is adopting a very diverse aesthetical approach to the verses in “Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” that reminds a me a lot of a young, pre-crossover Taylor Swift, and it’s a look she’s wearing better than I think anyone would have assumed she could in this track. She doesn’t need formulas to let her hair down in the studio, and that’s made more than a little clear to us in this latest recording.
“Didn’t Even Get a Goodbye” concludes with as much panache as it gets us started with, but what really makes it such a desirable and decadent hybrid of country and pop has little to do with beginnings and ends. The muscle in the melodies here makes it impossible for legit pop fans to turn away from the hook, while the humble attitude and presentation of the lyrics will almost certainly make hardcore country enthusiasts think of a better time in the genre’s long and storied history. I’ve always believed in the music Casey Ahern has been making since arriving in the primetime with “And Me” in 2018, and this is all the more reason to continue praising her efforts.
Colin Jordan
