Since releasing his debut album Up All Night in 2012, Kip Moore has been one of country music’s more intriguing figures. At once a chart-topper and a stylistic chameleon, Moore has managed to sneak past country radio’s gatekeepers and carve a nice niche for himself without adhering to the strict formulas that have defined the commercial success of many of his contemporaries.
Videos by American Songwriter
Now Moore is preparing to return with his third album Slowheart, a collection of songs that sees the Georgia-born artist doubling down on his musical curiosity and broad range of influences. In an exclusive video, Moore goes behind the scenes of the making of Slowheart opener “Plead The Fifth,” a bass-driven anthem of romantic vulnerability that could easily find a home on alternative rock radio between cuts by Future Islands and the Killers.
“The sentiment behind ‘Plead The Fifth’ stems from no matter how happy someone is in their life now, I feel like people always have those people in their life — the ones that constantly tug at your soul,” Moore says. “I know I’ve had them. This song is about not wanting to admit that there’s still that person out there after so many years. There’s a vulnerability that I refuse to own up to with this particular song and I think we’ve all faced that feeling.”
The track is a fitting opener for the record, which, as a whole, takes as many cues from rock as it does country, with soulful detours (“Blonde”), melodic anthems (“Bittersweet Company”), and radio-ready sing-alongs (lead single “More Girls Like You”) peppered throughout. Produced primarily by Moore himself, Slowheart is his most complete, cohesive declaration of his artistic sensibilities yet.
“Sonically, this record has more colors and more musical influences than any other record that I’ve done,” he adds. “I wanted listeners to feel all the different musical influences that inspired me growing up and still create a common thread. So I wanted to incorporate a little bit of that here with some of the grunginess that I liked growing up.”
Slowheart, out September 8, is currently streaming in its entirety at NPR Music. Watch the behind the scenes video for “Plead The Fifth” below.
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