Welcome to the second installment of what I intend to be a long-running series here on this blog. Starter Pack is a collection of 5-song playlists introducing you to a single artist. Each playlist comes with a guide to each song and why I picked it, as well as the basics you need to know to get into the artist.
Last time, I highlighted Chappell Roan, an up-and-coming queer pop artist who has gained a lot of popularity lately. This time, I’m sticking to some very similar themes, with a queer country artist this time. However, Orville Peck is a good deal less well-known than Chappell, which, I feel, is a crying shame that needs to be rectified.
My history with Orville goes back a few years now. I first discovered him during the pandemic, and I have extremely fond memories of getting lost in the drowsy, beautiful landscape of his first album during some of the loneliest times of my life.
I want to state outright that even if you don’t consider yourself a country fan, Orville is very much a fantastic and accessible artist. I knew almost nothing about the genre before I started listening to him and I still found his music extremely enjoyable. In fact, listening to Orville allowed me to appreciate country in a new way, and in turn introduced me to a lot of other country artists I love.
If you want to listen to the Starter Pack playlist, check it out here. And if you want a bit more context on Orville and these songs, stick around!
Background
It’s a little tricky to write any autobiographical details for Orville Peck because even more than with Chappell Roan, his persona as a musician is fully separate from his real identity. This is exemplified by the fact that he wears a leather mask in every one of his appearances, performances, videos, and more. His image as a lone, anonymous cowboy crooner feels like it would be compromised by getting a definite name and background for him.
That being said, it’s not hard to find actual biographical information on the artist behind Orville Peck. You’re a mere few Google searches away from his real name and unmasked face, and you’re free to go find those things if you wish (I have). But in the interest of talking about him as an artist, and with respect to the fact that he clearly wishes to separate his persona as a musician from the rest of his persona, I won’t talk about it here.
What I will say is that Orville Peck was born in Johannesburg, South Africa and has lived in many places over the course of his life, including in Europe, Canada, and the United States. He danced ballet as a child and studied performance art, which is where the inspiration for the mask came from. As he told L’Officel in 2019:
“I studied mask as an art form for a couple years―the method made famous by Jacques Lecoq. It was so fascinating to me because we think masks are gonna hide something, but they actually expose so much. If you put a mask on someone and make them just sit on a chair and do nothing, slowly you will notice the smallest things about them that tell you exactly how they are feeling and who they are. You as the watcher also get to fill in the blanks, so it’s almost more engaging to an audience than if it wasn’t there. I also think there is a lot to be said about the security of a mask that allows you to be completely raw and candid. But honestly, all that being said, I don’t really think about it that much. I do think showmanship is lacking in the world, but I am just doing what I know how, to make art the only way I know how. I don’t know… I used to be a dancer and an actor, and I come from a weird rural, theatrical art world, so I can’t help but make it extra. I also just think the mask looks cool.”
Orville self-produced and released his first album Pony in 2019 in collaboration with Sub Pop. The album was created while Orville was still living with his parents and working in a coffee shop, and he has stated that he intentionally wanted to do as much of the album himself as possible – including instrumentation. The album is a fusion of goth alternative rock and country. The album was well-regarded, receiving some accolades.
He released his follow-up EP, Show Pony in 2020. The EP includes a few more original tracks, as well as what would become a bit of a staple of his discography – duets. “Legends Never Die” featured country-pop icon Shania Twain, and brought quite a bit more attention to the small artist. He also featured on drag queen Trixie Mattel’s (one of his close friends) cover EP, performing Johnny Cash and June Carter’s “Jackson” together.
He would release his second album, Bronco, in 2022. This album was a far more upbeat showing for him, doing away with the gothic influences of his debut and EP and sticking more closely to a folk-country or pop-country sound.
Nowadays, he’s gearing up for the release of his third album, which will be an album of duets with other artists. So far, he’s released tracks for it with Noah Cyrus, Willie Nelson, Kylie Minogue, Diplo, and more. Quite a few more collaborations have been announced for when the album drops in August.
Tracks
Daytona Sand
I will admit, this pick is honestly a little self-indulgent. I think others tasked with coming up with a good first Orville Peck song might go for something else, but I just love this song so much that I can’t imagine recommending a single other one for your first.
When you first listen to Orville, you’ll probably notice his vocals. He has a deep, rich tone, a voice straight out of the past, crooning and swooping. But what is so neat about Orville is he doesn’t let his voice keep him stuck in old-styled ballads. He’s doing big swooping folk songs like this, that give him a chance to emote and really have fun with it.
I also think this song is a great example of incorporating a country feel into what is pretty ostensibly a pop song with a simple, effective structure of verse and chorus. It gives the song great tempo and build throughout, and makes it, I think, a great starter for a new fan. It also exemplifies the way he picks out the very best of country (in my opinion) to create a sound that feels shockingly fresh.
More like this one: “Lafayette”, “Blush”
Drive Me, Crazy
Another pretty major aspect of Orville’s sound and persona is the glitz, glam, and camp. As you might be able to tell by the way he discussed his decisions to stay masked, his persona as a lonesome cowboy isn’t 100% totally serious at all times. He’s more than willing to get a little theatrical and silly, but in doing so, I think he creates some of the most genuine art I’ve seen.
Case in point, my favorite track off of Show Pony. “Drive Me, Crazy” is a love song between two truck drivers, one of the few characters more stereotypically gruff and heterosexual than a cowboy. And yes, there’s some silliness to this song – the use of the trucker lingo to illustrate the way the two truck drivers flirt with each other (“Breaker, breaker, break hearts, ten-four, Daddy-o”).
Yet, there’s something so sweet and gentle and genuine and romantic about the way the love story is constructed. Those longing strings bring to mind how lonely and isolating it would be to spend your whole life alone in a truck, driving for miles, and then how dramatic and beautiful it would be to make an emotional connection with someone else on the highway alongside you, able to connect with them only through a crackling radio.
Plus, it’s unabashedly queer – something you’ll find is quite common in Orville’s music, as he is a gay man himself. That’s the Orville Peck effect – it’s silly, but it’s genuine. It’s beautiful, even if it’s a little camp.
More like this one: “Queen of the Rodeo”, “C’mon Baby, Cry”
Dead of Night
Orville’s early work doesn’t necessarily reflect the sound of his newer stuff, but there’s still something to love about it, particularly in the way it forms and exemplifies his ability to make serious, dark, and beautiful art.
With drunken, echoed guitar strings, Orville slowly meanders his way through the tragic tale of two young lovers stealing intimate moments alongside dusty trails and in the dark corners of seedy bars. The way his music can paint a picture of these dark, lonely places and make you feel the nostalgia the narrator does for this romance long gone is a perfect example of the kind of heart-wrenching artistry you’ll get on Pony.
I also think this reflects his later works, too. Though he’s mostly left behind this darker sound, his lyricism and delivery has always been so wonderful at capturing feelings of heartbreak and nostalgia – as the next track will demonstrate.
More like this one: “Summertime”, “Hope to Die”, “Kansas (Remembers Me Now)”
Let Me Drown
But I mean, yeah, that voice. As I’ve already discussed and as is pretty obvious from listening to just about anything he’s done, it’s his vocal performance that forms the key of what makes his music so unique and beautiful to me. I think my favorite of his vocal performances is in this huge, gorgeous heartbreak song from Bronco.
In this song, he begs a loved one to let him go, as he’s determined that all he’s doing in their relationship is hurting them. And that desolate sadness comes through so clearly in the way he sings. Sure, he can hit those low notes, but in this song he’s swooping up and down with some of the most beautifully sad lyrics I’ve ever heard. I mean, I’m sorry, but “But as I get older I get more afraid / Let me drown” always gets to me.
For beautiful lyricism and even more beautiful performances, you can’t really go wrong with my boy Orville. After all, he’s a cowboy crooner at heart.
More like this one: “The Curse of the Blackened Eye”, “Kalahari Down”, “Hexie Mountains”
The Hurtin’ Kind (ft. Midland)
Though it’s not quite out yet, I felt like it would be appropriate to end the playlist with one of the tracks off of Orville’s upcoming album of duets, Stampede. Though I’m not quite familiar with Midland, I really like the way his sound melds with Orville’s folksy country vibes, particularly in the way it brings out Orville’s vocals.
Orville does appear to really love a duet, though, so I’m excited to see what this new album brings. He’s really great at melding his sound to fit with the artists he collaborates with, something you wouldn’t expect from an artist who’s so niche with his sound.
I also selected this song for the way it exemplifies some of his cheerier, more straightforward country tracks – incorporating a lot of old country truisms (for example: -ing is for losers, -in’ all the way) – in a way that still feels fresh and approachable if you’re not a huge country fan.
More like this one: “Legends Never Die ft. Shania Twain”, “All I Can Say”
Bonus Media
“Jackson” with Trixie Mattel
I absolutely was required to include this video of Orville Peck and Trixie Mattel performing their cover of “Jackson” together because it is first of all: delightful and second of all: the reason I got into Orville Peck in the first place. I think it wasn’t until I saw him perform that I really understood his image and his shtick, and really found it charming in the way I do now.
These two are best friends, also, and have collaborated several times in non-musical ways, all of which I heartily recommend. In particular, I love the video of Orville doing Trixie’s makeup and, if you’re able to get ahold of it, his episode of her series Trixie Motel, where he assists in decorating a cowboy-themed motel room. (It’s on YouTube TV, HBO Max, and… probably… other places…)
“Fancy” by Reba McEntire
It didn’t really make much sense for me to include covers in this playlist, but Orville has so many fantastic covers I felt like I had to mention at least a few. Shoutout to his cover of Bronski Beat’s “Smalltown Boy” and his cover of “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” with Elton John.
But my absolute favorite Orville Peck cover is this one of a classic Reba McEntire song. I love the way he twists the perspective of the original song, about a poor young woman who finds wealth and safety through becoming a sex worker, at great personal cost to her and her family. But Orville takes it a step further with just one little lyric change – from “There stood a woman where a half-grown kid once stood” in the original to “There stood a woman where a half-grown boy once stood.” It just changes the way the whole song reads entirely, adding on this layer of gender nonconformity that fits it so well I’m shocked it wasn’t a part of the original.
I also just love the darkness and the tension he brings to it when he performs it in this way. A cover that expands and builds and twists on the original – it’s fantastic.
Absoludicrous 