Whitehorse – I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying
Release Date: January 13, 2023
Toronto-based husband-wife duo Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland revive the country sound of the 70s with contributions from Burke Carroll on pedal-steel and John Obercian on drums.
Harmonies are key here with Luke and Melissa’s voices blending to aching perfection on heartbreak ballads. ‘I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying’ was written and recorded over a three-month period during the lockdown. Doucet said “The pandemic was apocalyptic enough that only country music seemed appropriate.”
When Luke and Melissa first got married, Whitehorse hadn’t formed yet. They moved to Nashville for the year and really just listened to every kind of vintage country album the whole time they were there, whether it was Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris or Gram Parsons — you name it, they listened to it.
Doucet said the sonic focus of “I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying” covers the country era of 1969 to 1979; a far cry from the general beer-and-whiskey, pickup-truck and tailgate-party sentimentality that seems to frequent today’s charts.