Hunter country music star Catherine Britt is finally laying bare “her lived life” on her ninth studio offering, The Hardest Thing.
The singer-songwriter previewed the new album at Full Throttle Ranch last week and followed it up with a special launch during the Tamworth Country Music Festival, ahead of its release on Friday 23 January.
For the latest chapter, the five-time Golden Guitar Award winner has stripped things back.
She took time and space to write, while the majority of The Hardest Thing was recorded at her home in Newcastle.
Britt and husband Bradley Bergen produced, mixed and played the bulk of the album.
Mastering engineer William Bowden was then called upon to give it the final polish.
“This is a record that is intended to be listened to from start to finish,” she said.
“And, nothing is held back.
“It touches on the exploitation I endured as a young female in the music industry, my marriage breakdown, mustering the strength to heal, my road to sobriety and finding love again.”
The lead single and album opener, One Divorce, Two Kids & A Few Whiskies Ago, sums up The Hardest Thing in three-and-a-half minutes.
The following 12 tracks allow her the luxury to dive deeper and explore themes in greater detail.
You Don’t Love Here Anymore is a heartbreaking account of the devastation of domestic violence.
Pay No Mind to Me musically channels her hero, Hank Williams, while lyrically being straight to the point.
Maybe Not questions whether she should stay in a relationship that’s gone south… or maybe not.
A Little North of Sydney is about the ties that bind Britt to her hometown of Newcastle but how after a relationship sours, the city “feels like it’s not big enough when you break it into two”.
Red Pickup Truck talks of how she instantly freezes whenever she catches a glimpse of a certain vehicle while the title track, The Hardest Thing, puts things firmly into perspective.
The second half of the album sees her come out with all guns blazing and informs you to “run for the hills and hide” as she’s now in her Cowgirl Era.
Sky Blue is a vulnerable moment about shutting the world out when things get too overwhelming.
Co-written with David Lee Murphy, What I Want brings out a wild and raunchy side while I Found a New Love and Only A Country Boy Knows talk about finding love and safety with the right person.
The album closes with a reflective and tender Broken Heart At 33, dedicated to her now husband.
Throughout it all, Britt remains one of the most successful artists in Australian country music.
She’s a six-time ARIA Award Best Country Album nominee, signed to RCA in the US at just 17, earned two US Billboard Top 40 Chart singles, toured and worked with everyone from Brooks & Dunn to Alan Jackson to Dolly Parton, is the youngest Australian ever to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville and recorded a duet with Sir Elton John.
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