Pioneer – The Band Perry

Country & Western: At first listen, the group’s second album marks a step in the right direction and picks up from where their debut album left off. Both melodically as well as musically, the sibling trio — Kimberly Perry (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Reid Perry (bass, vocals) and Neil Perry (mandolin, drums, accordion, vocals) – show progression on tracks like Done, Forever Mine Nevermind and Chainsaw evidence the fact that the group have raised the bar.
The songs are also more personal - Back to Me Without You is about losing a friend or a lover. Forever Mine… is more upbeat, with a good chorus to support the verses.
Done has a decidedly 80s retro vibe to it, while I’m a Keeper is as country as it gets, where they loosen the strings and jam a little. Going the family way, the sweet-sounding Mother Like Mine is a touching ode to their mom, while the soaring I Saw A Light is the kind of devotional song that even a Gospel choir could do great justice to. In that sense, Pioneer does not have a paucity of different styles and flavours – something quite noteworthy for a group just two albums old.