Scott Standley - Tideland Country Demons

​Scott Standley

Tideland Country Demons
self-released; 2026

TOP ALBUM

​​By ​Dino DiMuro​​​
​

One of the joys of reviewing music is stumbling onto new, artist-created genres you won't find listed on SubmitHub. With Scott Standley's new album Tideland Country Demons, we have the cool sounds of "Cosmic Southern" though I'm also getting a good dose of funk, crossed with a style that's a distant cousin to Hozier. And all of this is not dissimilar to Standley's mind-blowing debut choral album VICTORIA which I gushed over in 2021.

Standley comes from Austin, Texas and currently creates music out of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington. He says he's been busy oyster farming to pay the bills while also writing and recording. He calls Tideland "a protest album to be sure. Heavy rhythms with drums and percussion for the lyrics of rage, paired with some warm hugs and introspective, choral breaks." I'd forgotten about my review years ago and assumed Standley was a young man of color, so lively and joyous are his vocals and arrangements. When performing live and solo, Standley performs as a one-man band where he plays kick drum and guitar while singing (not that unusual these days; see also Alex Dorsten).

The songs were constructed in a couple locations, starting with a 1997 trailer with a Mac mini using Logic. Keys and synths were added by Ryan Imboden in Canada. Mixing and mastering were by Davis Jones (while also adding sax and flute) in his home studio in Durango, Colorado. The production was built from composed midi drums, a real drum kit and extensive layers of percussion recorded in the trailer. The overall sound is quite cohesive and for having stacked so many tracks, though a little compressed in spots.

"Demon Country" is a grabber from the first note and beat, and playing it back now I can see the connection to Standley's earlier choral experiments. Though it's faster, the feel of the track reminded me of the David Essex classic "Rock On." It's a like music party dialed up to 11, certainly helped by the sax of Davis Jones.  "No Pride On Me" is packed with F-bombs like clumps of newspaper in a box of frozen fish, but the vocalizing is so sharp and in-the-pocket that you could probably play this for a kindergarten teacher (and she'd love it!). Funky and fun, and super quick at two minutes. 

"Gift to Share" at first feels like a middle section to the previous track, as we get a short breather for the first time, quickly morphing into a Motown-influenced love song. The churchly choirs are also back, along with lots of cool, rapid-fire production touches along with EDM keys. "Home With the Freaks" has the snap and smoothness of Prince, and again I love how Standley moves his teeming banks of vocals all over the stereo field. Some great, fast guitar runs too. 

"Water Or a Gun" is a lively tune (no surprise by now) that's framed by a cool repeating chorus chant: "You got down, you got down, you got down for what?" The instruments play jumpy quick patterns that seem to dance before your ears. "You're My Anger" reminded me of Hozier on my first listen before I remembered that Standley was already Hozier long ago! This one's shorter and much more "reverent" like everyone took a moment for group prayer. "Loss With the Win" continues the mellow mood with a vocal-packed R & B reverie. The closing moments with Rhodes piano, guitar and whistling is nothing short of magical. "Flower Behavior" seems to complete a trilogy of cathedral-like belters, with some lovely nylon-string guitar and super-heavy drums. "40 Hours to Freedom" is a one-minute wonder with just vocals, whistling and blues guitar. It acts as a perfect introduction to the soulful "Wakeup Bell" which has notably spacey keys along with a powerful solo vocal. "No Ticket to Heaven" is prog-funk in the style of Material or possibly the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and a great send-off. 

Standley is a unique artist and I'm glad I got to revisit his music. I can't recommend this album enough!

scottstandley.bandcamp.com/album/tideland-country-demons

scottstandley.komi.io

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