As a title,
The Last Resort carries a vague air of desperation -- you've run out of options, so you're stuck with this course of action -- but
Midland never forget a resort is also a place of relaxation. Filled with candied harmonies and sweeter melodies,
The Last Resort: Greetings From is designed to be a record to spin when you unwind. It'll chase away the blues and make a good time even better, as its songs about paychecks, longnecks, cowboys, and sunrises all feel warm and welcoming.
Midland don't wallow in sadness, they shrug it away, knowing that there's another day and another margarita around the corner. This laissez faire attitude is accentuated by the group's dedication to the soft sounds of the early '80s, crafting a canny hybrid of slick Urban Cowboy and new traditionalist swagger. Unlike
Let It Roll, where their retro fantasias glided by on the surface,
The Last Resort: Greetings From teems with distinct shifts in mood, whether it's the introduction of duet partner
Jon Pardi on the barroom anthem "Longneck Way to Go," the percolating humor of "If I Lived Here," the hardwood boogie of "King of Saturday Night," or the twilight romance of "Take Her Off Your Hands." It all adds up to an album so easy and assured, it's hard not to get swept up in its cool, breezy concoctions. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine