This post is sponsored by One2One Network. All opinions are my own.
You might know this about me already, but I am a huge fan of music. There is a record player in my front room on the first floor of my house and whenever I need a moment to myself to just relax, I sit in there and put it on. Music is so powerful, so I was thrilled to get the chance to preview the debut album from Whole Damn Mess, The Queen and The Outcast. I was pretty much blown away by this album. I enjoyed it so much that I listened to it three times in a row. It was really powerful and is clearly all about a fantastic love story.
About Whole Damn Mess
Success stories don’t usually come with a twist ending. But that’s exactly what happened to singer/songwriter Don Miggs – only when he stopped trying to force his life to follow the familiar “fame and fortune” narrative did he finally realize that the story he’d already written was far more compelling. That story, as complicated and offbeat as life itself, is the focus of Miggs’ raw and confessional new project the Whole Damn Mess.
To have the Whole Damn Mess, in other words, means that gaining wisdom and maturity doesn’t necessarily extinguish the fire in your belly or satisfy the dream in your heart. It’s about not holding back, about opening the floodgates and letting honesty and passion come out in all their unfiltered glory. It’s about giving up on perfection in favor of emotion in hopes of touching listeners’ souls, not just striking a hipster pose.
About The Queen and The Outcast
The band’s debut album, The Queen and the Outcast, is at its core an unexpected love story. It’s a rock and roll fairy tale – on the surface the clichéd tale of two archetypes, the Rich Girl and the Bad Boy. In Miggs’ revealing, autobiographical songs, though, a more complex and richly detailed truth emerges. In the process, Miggs realizes that having everything you need doesn’t mean that you should give up on what you’ve always wanted.
“I want this music to be everything to someone, not something to everyone,” Miggs says. “I’d love to show people that no matter what you have, every day can still be the best day of your life. It can be the day that you do something that you’ve never done before. It would be cool if this album gave even one person the hope to dream a little bigger than they have been.”
The Queen and the Outcast is the kind of album that can only come after the ripening of life experience, and not just because of the singular story that it tells. The music itself is a unique blend of rock abandon tempered by a knowing cleverness, with pop hooks that are not only able to worm their way into the ear but provide something to ponder for the brain inside. In a culture that seems increasingly skewed to the 14-year-old mentality, it’s refreshing to find an album not made for kids that can nonetheless still make you feel like one.
Tracklist
- And There They Were
- We Don’t Need A Reason
- Be Good To Yourself
- Anywhere Without You
- That’s Just How It Goes
- Maybe We Should Do It
- Helium
- Summer Under Covers
- When She Says
- Got You Stuck in My Head
Favorite Tracks
While I honestly enjoyed the entire album (I don’t think there is even one song I was “meh” about), there are two tracks that really stood out to me and I found myself wanting to listen to them over and over.
“Anywhere Without You”: This song is pretty powerful, in my opinion. I love the feeling of love that I get from it. He is saying he doesn’t want to go anywhere without her – and is so adamant about it, that it makes my heart melt. The lyrics give me goosebumps.
“When She Says”: I adore this song. It is the second to last song on the album and my favorite. After first listening to it, it got stuck in my head. I was eager to play it for my husband, who also loves this type of music. He agreed, it is the best on the album – although the whole album is amazing. Something about this song really reels me in, but I can’t say 100% what it is. Between the lyrics and the beat – I would say it is damn near perfect.
The Queen and The Outcast is Available Now!
Connect on Social Media
Official Website: https://www.wholedamnmess.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wholedamnmess
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wholedamnmess
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wholedamnmess/
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.
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