Orville Peck is a gay, Canadian, Country artist that blends the classic Old West sounds with the distorted guitar of shoegaze and upbeat pop styles. Orville Peck is his stage name, a persona that can be recognized by the fringed mask that hides his face and creates a striking look.
Peck currently has 3 albums: Pony (2019), Bronco (2022), Stampede (2024). Peck also has 1 EP, Show Pony (2020) which features covers of multiple pop songs.
Orville Peck’s first studio album, Pony features 12 songs and has a running time of 41 minutes. It came out in 2019, with Peck as the main artist and Duncan Hay Jennings as the composer. It takes the listener on the journey of a gay man in the wild west.
Here is a breakdown and analysis of each song in the album:
“Dead of Night” – Track 1
This opening track is blue and sets the mood for the album. Its use of guitar and dreamy vocals give a twangy sound, emphasizing the Wild West setting for the album. It sets a tone of lustful longing for something one can’t have, illustrating Peck’s inability to fit in as a gay man in a country setting.
“Winds Change” – Track 2
The next track continues the feeling of being a lost loner in the Old West. Deep vocals move higher, picking up in energy. This song’s longing has more emotion and more passion
“Turn to Hate” – Track 3
This song starts off with rock instrumentation, giving a more modern and less old-westerny feeling. The tune picks up with higher vocals, light guitar, and lots of drums not seen in the last two tracks. This light-hearted and free-feeling beginning leads to an ending that leaves the listener feeling solemn, even angry, as Peck ‘turns to hate’.
“Buffalo Run” – Track 4
Track 4 is by far the most shoegaze song on the album, featuring heavily distorted guitar and low vocals. This song transforms the solemn end of Track 3 into an angry reckoning. The heavy beats mimic the erratic feeling of a stampede of buffalo.
“Queen of the Rodeo” – Track 5
Here, the album calms back down for a time, entering with a slow pop music sound with striking vocals and lyrics. It begs the question: what is the cost of the rodeo?
“Kansas (Remembers Me Now)” – Track 6
Radio static leads the listener into a somber ballad. Regrets and past experiences are laid to rest, with gentle vocals, layered instrumentation and lyrics before more static escorts the listener into the interlude of the album.
“Old River” – Track 7
This interlude feels like an old chant, a folk song passed down by generations, that passes the listener into the second half of the album.
“Big Sky” – Track 8
Track 8 opens with deep vocals and simple guitar. The singer’s disdain and anger toward the past is amplified through the minimal instrumentation of simple guitar and banjo.
“Roses are Falling” – Track 9
Like walking into the saloon on a busy day in the Wild West, track 9 brings hopeless romance to the album. Lighthearted guitar feeds into the romance of the song and a feeling of new hope is brought to the album. A love ballad made for an innocent new lover.
“Take You Back (The Iron Hoof Cattle Call)” – Track 10
A classic Wild West whistling intro to acoustic guitar strumming feels like riding on the trail for days with nothing but a banjo. His lyrics show defiance and anger, closure from something, and a sense of leaving another town with no expectation of returning.
“Hope to Die” – Track 11
This track goes back down in tempo, bringing longing for the past and the longing for an old lover. Orville Peck’s deep lyrics, long holds on great notes as well a thoughtful drumbeat and longing vocals give the listener a sense of emotion and sadness of a past that cannot be returned to.
“Nothing Fades Like the Light” – Track 12
This outro of the album is a wistful lullaby to say goodbye to the journey of the record. Its quiet and calm composure is almost completely opposite to dead of night, but is coherent with the story and feel of the rest of the tracks.
As country music has a resurgence in the current world, there is always room for new and experimental artists to make their way into the scene. It is clear simply by listening to his first studio album that Orville Peck is the perfect example of an artist deserving of praise and following. As his following and the following of others like him grows, it can only mean good things for the country music scene.
