Singer/songwriter Frankie Ballard just wrapped a scorching 10-date at capacity European Tour with stops in Germany, Holland, Ireland, and Scotland. In addition to a sold out show on his first trip to Amsterdam, Ballard capped of the run with selling out legendary Bush Hall in London.
Ballard’s latest album El Rio (Warner Bros. Records/Warner Music Nashville) was released on June 10th to critical acclaim including performances on both The Today Show and Live with Kelly. The album has already been selected by Rolling Stone as one of the 25 Best Country and Americana albums of 2016 so far and The Tennessean as one of the best 16 Nashville albums of 2016 so far. People Magazine and Entertainment Weekly also selected as “must” listens.
Recorded at the famed Sonic Ranch, just south of El Paso in Tornillo, Texas, Ballard, band, and producer Marshall Altman left the comfort of Nashville in exchange for the opportunity to immerse themselves 24/7 creating this unique and fresh album.
Rolling Stone describes the album in a recent story, “It’s a different kind of album for the Michigan-born, Nashville-based songwriter, filled with country-rock anthems that have more in common with the heartland heroes of Ballard’s youth — especially Bob Seger and John Mellencamp — than the outlaws and highwaymen whose names are so often cited by country music’s younger class.”
Ballard explains in the same article, “It’s just my own brand of American music. There’s rock & roll. There’s country stories and country lyrics and country songs. And there’s a lot of blues swagger and blues guitar playing. It’s all those things together.”
The album’s current single, “Cigarette”, written by Kip Moore, Chris Stapelton and Jaren Johnston is climbing country radio charts. The bluesy-rock song showcases a raw, guitar driven sound found throughout the new album. Rolling Stone says of the song, “Cigarette” is perhaps the most heavy rock & roll song Ballard has ever cut, driven forward by a slapback guitar riff and a rapid-fire vocal delivery.” Billboard calls the song “a bold, in-your-face tone made by just a handful of musicians, and it provides a strong snapshot of the mentality behind his third album, El Rio.”
Frankie Ballard’s previous album, Sunshine & Whiskey, produced three consecutive no. 1 singles – the platinum-certified “Sunshine & Whiskey,” the gold-certified “Helluva Life,” and one of the Top 3 Billboard Country Airplay songs of 2015, “Young & Crazy.” Ballard has combined album sales and single/album streaming of over 450,000 to date with over 150 million total streams across all streaming platforms and 90 million streams at Spotify. Ballard continues his electrifying set on the road this Fall and Winter touring across North America.