The Red Betty recently released her new album Icehouse with Spectra Music Group: an album that has impressive vocal, emotional, and stylistic range. This New Jersey-based musical powerhouse displays not only her incredible vocal abilities, but also her impressive combination of country and Americana styles in her music’s diverse and unexpected instrumentation. Icehouse is the second studio album from The Red Betty (TRB), with her first album, Couch Fables, released in 2023.
In the opening track “Six Feet Under Love”, The Red Betty immediately displays her vocal chops with her impressive vibrato and vocal flips. She uses these elements to depict a level of sincerity and emotion which makes her heartfelt lyrics so much more raw and relatable. The song’s title hints at a story about a doomed and hurtful love. With lines like “I’ll love you ‘til I’m six feet under” and “Do you think of me as I think of you?” TRB tells a story of hopeful yet devastating heartbreak, giving listeners a taste of what TRB has in store in the rest of the album.
“Black Eyed Susans Way” is a beautiful tribute to all of the little nudges from the universe that we are on the right path, like seeing the flowers that remind you of a place you used to be. The song’s repeating line “black eyed susans call me home” is TRB’s way of thanking all of the constant, comforting reminders of where she came from and where she has yet to go. These little pieces of life also remind all of us to let go of everything weighing us down- “Shed my dreams and fears of the past”. TRB reminds us to thank the past and move forward. The song also has an easy-flowing guitar solo as its bridge, giving the entire track an ethereal energy that matches its naturistic themes.
“Sinners and Believers” is a much grittier track off of the EP, with its Americana-style guitar intro and lines like “sinners gonna sin, believers gonna believe” speaking to the true nature of people. Here, TRB reminds us to spend our time on people who lift us up, rather than giving all of our energies to people who weigh us down. This is a theme that the album as a whole revolves around, and one that TRB is clearly very passionate about and is able to articulate beautifully in all of these tracks.
TRB slows down and incorporates a surprising and moving spoken word verse in “2-Bit Sermon”. The album’s middle point, “2-Bit Sermon” uses its spoken word elements to recreate a church sermon to remind listeners to slow down and appreciate and provide words of encouragement- “assess your life from time to time to find the path that suits you best. Fast or slow, it ain’t matter, right? Just know that life’s a one-time test”. Her lyrical abilities do not disappoint in this track about not wasting your life on things that don’t make you happy. Another song with an impactful and well-articulated message about joy and self-love that TRB conveys so well.
In “House of a Broken Heart” TRB once again shows off her incredible vocals, this time accompanied by an acoustic guitar and harmonica to create a track that tells of her previous experiences with healing from heartbreak- “I’m a page of your book done and gone… I will find my piece of mind”.
“Raise ‘em Glasses” picks up the tempo with an upbeat country-style track that’s fun and unexpected. Here, she leaves behind all of the troubles encapsulated in the previous tracks in favor of having fun and looking ahead- “Ain’t nobody gonna cry my tears, ain’t gonna feel my fears” TRB encourages us all to raise a glass to everyone who’s ever doubted or demeaned us with the message “Ain’t no men tell me what I’m worth. You gonna tell me my heart don’t work?” This is a country anthem that’s also a feminist anthem, telling women to ignore everyone who has ever demeaned them or not supported their dreams. This is a song about leaving behind everyone who doesn’t believe in you, tying together all of the messages about thanking the past and moving forward boldly and with love.
TRB ends the album with “The Love I Needed”, a slow track about heartbreak and healing. Here, she gives hope of feelings that fade and the possibility of moving on. After repeating the line “don’t leave me behind”, the track explodes into a choir of angelic vocals with TRB’s amazing riffs and belting on top. This creates such a powerful effect to close out the album that perfectly encapsulates TRB’s style and her power that stretches across her entire discography.
Reviewed by Steph Stone
