“Country pop.” “Slick country.” “Bro country.” All terms, of varyingly negative connotation, used to describe the current landscape of country music. It can be hard at times to put your finger on exactly what makes a song with some twang, electric slide and a rock beat fall into the “pop” camp or the alt-country camp, but that fine dividing line often causes consternation among listeners who prefer one over the other. Sturgill Simpson seems to get lumped into the “outlaw” or “alternative” country camp, but however you describe the up-and-coming country star he can belt out a tune, as we saw when he cracked our top 5 best covers of 2014. Continue reading »