Album review: KIP MOORE – Wild World

KIP MOORE - Wild World

Snakefarm Records [Release date 29.05.20]

Country rock singer/songwriter, Kip Moore is now on his fourth studio album in ten years. Each of the previous three were US Billboard Top Ten entries, so like many country artists, he knows how to ride the wave of popularity.

There are plenty of well worn country tropes trailing through “Wild World”. It’s full of blue collar sentiments and the vagaries of personal relationships – and Moore uses that familiarity to draw us in, then hooks us with his songs, his music and his emotion.

A fair chunk of change has been spent on the production. It’s got polish, it’s got gloss.

It resonates, it resounds. It expertly merges rock, pop and country into a discrete, identifiable sub genre with a wide demographic appeal.

Along with his regular co-writers, Josh Miller and Westin Davis, Moore has a narrative discipline that makes most of the songs fully formed stories. There’s an almost palpable sense of yearning as he escapes into the myth of the Wild West, in ‘Southpaw’, then switches to the personal on the minimalist melancholy of ‘She’s Mine’. They couldn’t be more different, but share a romantic, emotional connection.

Moore’s voice, a keenly worn down country rasp, frequently seems to rise up through his body and emerge from within – he’s “on my way to heaven” on the chiming, shimmering ‘Fire And Flame’. And it takes on a moving tone of resignation on ‘Jani Blue’, despite his snarling challenge: “so you think you’ll find redemption in a stranger’s touch”. The marriage of guitars, piano and widescreen production creates a soft rock, crowd pleasing wall of sound, making these two tracks probably the most accessible tracks on the album.

Then there’s the equally satisfying low key stuff. The simply framed, but hookily tuneful ‘Hey Old Lover’, and magnificently apposite, microcosmic closer, ‘Payin Hard’, a powerful evocation of the trade off between career decisions and personal relationships. Few songs propose the sentiment that the grass is greener on this side.

Say no more. ****

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.

In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

Josh Taerk Sunday Sessions 2024

Latest session: Sunday 25 February
Next session: Sunday 14 April

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio



David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 March 2024.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 5 March 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 18 March 2024

GYPSY’S KISS We’ve Come To Play
FM Out Of The Blue (Frontiers)
SHOTGUN MISTRESS Shot Down (indie)
ATTIC THEORY Violent Delight (indie)
FLOYA Yume (FiXT)
SAHAJI Tell Me All Your Feelings (indie)

Featured Albums w/c 18 March 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023
12:00-13:00 LEAVES’ EYES Myths Of Fate (AFM Records)
14:00-16:00 HOLLY LERSKI Sweet Decline (indie)


To see our Tweets you need to be logged in to a Twitter account



Popular (last 10 days)


This entry was posted in ALBUM REVIEWS, ALBUM REVIEWS (Mobile), ALL POSTS and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply