Maddie and Tae are a new country duo who recently came out with their first EP, a 10 song album titled Start Here.

  “Waitin’ on a Plane” was not a very good start to the album. I found Maddie and Tae’s voices to be not very strong, and I needed more diversity throughout the song. It felt the exact same throughout most of it which made it not very interesting to listen to. I really couldn’t find much to applaud and Maddie & Tae definitely should have picked another song to start off the album.

  I had high hopes going into “Girl in a Country Song” as it is their most popular song. I wasn’t disappointed. This was a very ‘honky tonk’ country song which I generally am more fond of. This song really showed the country flare of their voices and there were plenty of riffs that were very well done.

  “Smoke” continued to raise my spirits for the album. It definitely had less intense, but similar vibe to Carrie Underwood’s “Blown Away”. This song is what I think of when I think about girl country, and I appreciated that.

  “Shut Up and Fish” is a much more playful song but similar to “Waitin’ on a Plane”, I found it really repetitive. This makes it quite catchy, and I love the idea of the song, but I feel it could have been executed better.

  I love the lyrics and idea behind “Fly”. It has a very good message and is a beautiful addition to the album. I feel it really reflects the style Maddie and Tae are trying to pursue.

  I really disliked the track “Sierra”. It seemed that in this song, the artists were trying to sound as country as possible, and it didn’t have a playful tone as I’ve seen in most of their other songs. The lyrics are cute, but I feel like this song is trying too hard.

  The track “Your Side of Town” was a nice redemption. This song is catchy and playful. It makes you wanna put on your cowboy boots and square dance! It isn’t trying too hard and is a fun girl power country song.

   “Right Here, Right Now” and “No Place like You”  were very girly breakup songs. They sounded a lot like old Taylor Swift, which was pleasing. You can really tell that Maddie and Tae had tons of fun recording these tracks, as it reflects well in their voices.

  As there are plenty of storm country songs, I was really hoping that “After the Storm Blows Through” wouldn’t be the epitome of cliche. I was surprised to hear the beautiful metaphor for depression and sadness being a thread throughout the song. It was heart wrenchingly beautiful and really showcased the country inflection in their voices.

  “Downside of Growing Up” was a cute tribute to the real pain that can come with growing up. It goes nicely hand in hand with the rest of the album. I did feel that this one was also quite repetitive, but I didn’t mind it as much because they did have some diversity in the song.
  With a little bit of reordering of the album and disregarding some of the songs, I think people who love female country would really enjoy this album as a whole.