Witty swagger meets tender truth in East-Nashville based Margo Price’s modern outlaw of an album, ‘Hard Headed Woman,' released today on Loma Vista Recordings.
Price has never been one to sit still. Since her debut ‘Midwest Farmer’s Daughter' in 2016, she has moved between autobiographical confessionals, political manifestos, country-rock swagger, and psychedelic experimentation. With her new record Price comes full circle—leaning back into honky-tonk grit and outlaw country spirit, while carrying the lessons of her adventurous detours. It feels both like a return to roots and a declaration of independence.
Recorded at RCA Studio A in Nashville with longtime producer Matt Ross-Spang, the album crackles with immediacy. The harmonious fiddle-based ‘Prelude’ sets the tone for the album, swiftly followed by upbeat and direct lead single ‘Don’t Let the Bastards Get You Down’ – listeners are in for a sharp, witty, and defiant ride. With a Kristofferson-style groove, Price skewers condescension with biting one-liners—proof that she hasn’t lost the fire that made her debut such a revelation; “They wanna wear your rhinestones/
Man, they ain't got the backbone”
From there, the record alternates between rowdy barnburners and tender ballads. ‘Red Eye Flight’ charges ahead with barroom energy, while ‘I Just Don’t Give a Damn’ showcases the tight interplay of her band, the Price Tags. By contrast, ‘Keep a Picture’ and ‘Nowhere Is Where’ slow things down, their pedal steel and fiddle work framing Price’s vocals with a mournful elegance.
One of the album’s highlights is ‘Close to You,’ a vulnerable love song and road trip to the one she needs. Price has always excelled at contradictions—tough yet gentle, bold but bruised—and this track exemplifies that duality. Elsewhere on the album Price brings in friends: Jesse Welles lends harmonies on the buoyant ‘Don’t Wake Me Up,’ while Tyler Childers joins her on the ballad ‘Love Me Like You Used to Do,’ a duet that seems to honour a Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge song.
The album closes with an outlaw full-stop in both ‘Wild at Heart’ a Tex-Max dance floor number and a fitting tribute with a cover of Waylon Jennings’ ‘Kissing You Goodbye’, which is more than a nod to her music inspiration—it’s a reminder that Price is not merely reviving traditions but actively carrying them forward.
In comparison to her more experimental phase on 2023’s ‘Strays' and its companion ‘Strays II,' ‘Hard Headed Woman' is far more stripped-down and exudes Price’s confidence in her body of work. Where previous albums dabbled in psychedelia, lush arrangements, and mind-expanding textures, ‘Hard Headed Woman' keeps its boots firmly on the honky-tonk floor.
Track listing: 1. Prelude {Hard Headed Woman} 2. Don’t Let The Bastards Get You Down 3. Red Eye Flight 4. Don’t Wake Me Up (feat. Jesse Welles) 5. Close To You 6. Nowhere Is Where 7. Losing Streak 8. I Just Don’t Give a Damn 9. Keep A Picture 10. Love Me Like You Used To Do (feat. Tyler Childers) 11. Wild At Heart 12. Kissing You Goodbye
Release date: 29th August 2025 Record Label: Loma Vista Recordings Buy the Hard Headed Woman album right here
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