Jon Pardi Goes ‘Hollywood’ On Latest LP

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Jon Pardi adds a new spark to his signature honky tonk sound on his upcoming fifth studio album, Honkytonk Hollywood, slated for release April 11 via Capitol Records Nashville. The title track from the new project, a grits-and-glitz tribute to the dual nature of Pardi’s life and mindset, is out now.

The 17-track collection features both tracks that ring with pristine, pure-country tenderness, and some that embrace fuzzed-out fiddles and soaring tripled guitars or grungy bass lines and bottomless grooves. Pardi worked with Jay Joyce for the first time as producer and stepped away from the traditional Nashville recording system on the new project, spending three solid weeks in the studio, building each track up from nothing, recording them with his own band.

“All my albums have been rock and roll with a country flare—this one keeps on rockin’,” Pardi explains. “It’s also the most grown-up record I’ve ever made, all my soul basically. Honkytonk Hollywood is for the Nashville that’s in my blood and it’s also a nod to my California roots. And right now, more than ever, I hope it’s a way to honor and lift up the people of my home state.”

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Kicking off the album off in overdrive, “Boots Off” explodes from the speakers with a roadhouse-rocking stomp, representing the first of many hot-and-heavy love songs. Tracks like the grungy “Rush” fuses alt-rock attitude with howling vocals, capturing the swirling ecstasy of desire, while “Love the Lights Out” is a steamy soul rocker with slide guitar hooks and a throbbing pulse, and “She Gets to Drinking” sways with an intoxicating swing.

On other songs Pardi pushes boundaries even further sonically, with the current single “Friday Night Heartbreaker” pairing a tortured blast of hard rock with a sleek vocal. “Hey California” cruises down a Sunset Strip of ‘70s-style studio-rock sophistication with atmospheric guitars, and the slow-grooving “Don’t You Wanna Know,” highlights Pardi’s twangy vocals pleading for romantic reconnection through a cloud of mellow, new-wave pop.

“He Went to Work” is a tip of the hat to the steadfast fathers of the world, while “She Drives Away” leaves listeners with a lump in your throat. Pardi goes all-in on the moody “Gambling Man,” a busted flat warning to avoid his dice-rolling ways, and the two-stepper “Bar Room Blue” aches with a woozy, San Antonio swing. He closes out the latest set with “Kinda Wanna Keep It That Way,” a tranquil anthem with the easy strut of self-confidence from an artist who has fully bared his soul and done things his way.

“We did what we wanted, and it stands out because of it,” admits Pardi. “Taking the chance paid off, and I kind of want to keep it that way.”

Honkytonk Hollywood Track List:
1. “Boots Off” (Jon Pardi, Luke Laird, Wyatt McCubbin)
2. “Friday Night Heartbreaker” (Jessie Jo Dillon, Ryan Hurd, Josh Miller, Daniel Ross, Chris Tompkins)
3. “She Gets to Drinking” (Jon Pardi, Hillary Lindsey, Hailey Whitters)
4. “Gambling Man” (Josh Kear, Josh Miller, Chris Tompkins)
5. “Hey California” (Ben Johnson, Jordan Minton, Hunter Phelps, John Reno Prentice)
6. “Rush” (Jon Pardi, Ross Copperman, Brice Long)
7. “She Drives Away” (Zach Abend, Jimi Bell, Seth Ennis, Jordan Minton)
8. “He Went to Work” (Dan Alley, Brandon Kinney, Neil Medley)
9. “Last Call Thing” (Jon Pardi, Casey Brown, Luke Laird, Travis Wood)
10. “Honkytonk Hollywood” (Bart Butler, Benjy Davis, Jacob Paul Rice)
11. “Love The Lights Out” (Jon Pardi, Jimi Bell, Matt Dragstrem)
12. “Nice Place to Visit” (Pryor Baird, Billy Lawson, James LeBlanc)
13. “Hard Knocks” (Jackson Dean, Jeff Hyde, Ryan Tyndell)
14. “Don’t You Wanna Know” (Jon Pardi, Luke Laird, Hillardy Lindsey)
15. “Bar Room Blue” (Jon Pardi, Luke Laird, Josh Thompson)
16. “Who I Don’t Wanna Be” (Jon Pardi, Rhett Akins, Will Bundy)
17. “Kinda Wanna Keep It That Way” (Marv Green, Jeff Hyde, Brice Long)

Lorie Hollabaugh
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