For the better part of two decades, Nicki Bluhm carried the torch for modern-day American roots music across the country, playing as many shows as possible, blurring the borderlines between country-soul and cosmic rock & roll. Rancho Deluxe finds her at home in Nashville, embracing the contentment and rootedness of a slower, steadier life dedicated not to the music industry, but to music itself. Named after the studio she built with her partner and musical collaborator Jesse Noah Wilson, it’s a communal album that highlights the enduring strength of Nicki’s voice — cut from the same cloth as Linda Ronstadt’s croon and Bonnie Raitt’s bluesy belt — as well as the spirit of the musical community she’s built in Tennessee. From the string-band stomp of “Cumberland Banks” to the Thin Lizzy-worthy guitarmonies of “Simple Side of Me,” Rancho Deluxe pushes her music in new directions, showcasing just how powerful a little time at home can be.
