We’ve been in the Send Me Your Ears studio today listening to Right Wing Planet, the latest single from Rodeo FM.
Right Wing Planet is an observation of how the world is today. In the words of Rodeo FM “It is 2022. The world is still in shambles. Imperialist wars, climate disasters, exploitation, you name it. The line still runs between the rich and the poor. Not between countries or other outdated vehicles used to fabricate identities. But few seem to notice. Many seem to embrace it. Because it’s a Right Wing Planet.”
We like the fact that the accompanying video has the lyrics at the bottom of the screen. Your eyes are immediately drawn to this and it really helps get the message of the song across.
Starting the song with some picked acoustic guitar, a lovely stereo electric guitar joins the mix with some nice little country-style licks.
A superbly played country fiddle joins the mix, together with some simple train-feeling snare and hi-hat. Fiddle is provided by guest musician Davis West who doesn’t appear to be in the music video, but who provides a stunning selection of riffs and solos with a real Americana classic country feel.
There are some great layered vocals and harmonies and the lead vocalist has a perfect Southern States country twang to his voice.
The song has a wonderful “Barn Dance” feel to it. You can almost imagine the gingham dresses and cowboy boots blurring as they dance their way around a sawdust-floored Saturday night in the heart of Dixie.
But wait… Rodeo FM are from the heart of Germany’s capital, Berlin! How they managed to pull off something so authentically Southern States of America is a mystery to us, but nonetheless, this is a truly bona fide performance.
From a production perspective, we felt that a little EQ adjusting could really bring this track to life. Firstly, a hi-pass filter at around 35-40Hz would remove all the unnecessary rumble coming from the double bass. A boost around 50-60Hz for some extra thump from the bass and extra thickness in the low end in general. The acoustic guitar is resonating in the 250-270Hz range so a careful surgical cut here would help to reduce that peak and balance out the low mids. A boost around 3.5kHz would improve the presence and definition in the track and a fairly large high shelf boost around 10kHz would increase the brightness and ‘air’ giving the track a sense of ‘realness’ and life.
For fans of Crosby, Stills and Nash, Neil Young and Tom Petty, Germany’s Rodeo FM will surprise and delight you with their take on alt-country.