Where her
Lady Antebellum bandmate
Charles Kelley decided to continue their band's pop-oriented country sound on his 2016 solo album,
The Driver,
Hillary Scott opted for something introspective for her own 2016 project,
Love Remains. Teaming up with her family -- mother
Linda Davis, father
Lang Scott, and sister
Rylee --
Scott decided to cut a modern gospel album with
Ricky Skaggs acting as producer. Some of
Love Remains certainly contains churchy elements -- a gospel choir graces "The River," there's a version of the old hymn "Come Thou Fount" -- but this isn't an album that trades in overt religious tropes. Thanks in part to
Skaggs' understated production,
Love Remains is a subtle, moving work occupying a common ground between contemporary country, modern worship, and traditional gospel. By emphasizing the quiet moments, it's an album that undersells its big emotional showcases, including "Thy Will," a song
Hillary Scott wrote in the wake of a miscarriage in 2015. Such confessionals give the record a rich resonance, painting the personal as a spiritual matter, a trick that's rarely attempted on country gospel albums.
Scott pulls this off because
Love Remains is indeed a family affair -- she gains sustenance from the very presence of her parents and sister, who provide not only harmonies but a palpable bond of tradition -- and it's also a record that prizes intimacy. Because of this,
Love Remains can be appreciated as a soothing bath but also rewards a close listen, a listen that reveals the deep feeling underpinning every track. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
