Chase Rice Earns Critical Praise for ‘I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go To Hell.’
With Friday’s release of his fourth studio album, I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go To Hell, multi-Platinum singer/songwriter Chase Rice re-introduced himself to fans and critics alike, earning early praise for the standout project which he will bring to television audiences nationwide via a performance on “Fox & Friends” this Friday, Feb. 17 as well as “Tamron Hall” this coming Monday, Feb. 20. With Rice having turned inward for inspiration and motivation on the project, that process of “chasing self-respect developed his latest, best album yet,” declares the Tennessean, noting that despite “a glass ceiling both he and the industry had imposed on his career, he’s clearly blasted through that impediment” and even remarking of standout track “Bench Seat,” “the touching country ballad could be, by the end of 2023, one of the surprise candidates for Song of the Year.” Cowboys & Indians further celebrates I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go To Hell for its “risk-taking and rule breaking approach,” proclaiming, “that gamble has paid off handsomely, resulting in vulnerable and personal music.” Billboard agrees, noting the album “refines his artistic voice,” creating an offering that is “still propulsive with arena-ready moments, but is laced with deeper, more introspective themes.” PopCulture asserts that the project is already “the best country album of the year… and everybody’s got to live up to it,” remarking that instead of following the traditional “if it’s not broke don’t fix it” approach, “Rice and his team, somehow, simultaneously broke it AND fixed it — both on purpose.” Leading U.K. music publication Entertainment Focus also has high praise for the “absolute triumph” of an album, labeling it with the first five star review of the year – an honor that took the outlet until September to award in 2022 – and remarking that “it’s a songwriter’s album and a lyricist’s album but it also does all sorts of wonderful things with melodies that are both clever and yet infectious at the same time.” In celebration of the critically acclaimed release, Rice treated fans across the country to stripped-back, and acoustic live performances of the album, beginning on release day itself. Starting in Golden, Colo. on Friday, Feb. 10, Rice stopped by Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies, to perform atop the dugout before visiting the Coors Brewery for a special performance in honor of the album’s cover photo featuring his late father, Daniel Rice, with two Coors Banquets in hand. Rice then traveled to Phoenix, Ariz. to take part in the Super Bowl festivities with an album release show for football fans on Saturday, Feb. 11, before returning home to Nashville to grace the Grand Ole Opry stage last night, Feb. 14. In addition to treating the full Opry audience to new songs “Bench Seat,” “Way Down Yonder” and recent No. 1 hit “Drinkin’ Beer. Talkin’ God. Amen.,” Rice also performed a post-Opry show for purchasers of the album, treating those fans to live renditions of album cuts “If I Were Rock & Roll,” “All Dogs Go To Hell,” “Life Part Of Livin’” and “I Hate Cowboys,” plus his triple-Platinum No. 1 “Eyes On You” and the Diamond-certified smash hit “Cruise,” which Rice co-wrote. Soon, fans will get to hear even more of the new music live on Rice’s Way Down Yonder Tour, set to visit iconic venues such as Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, Boston’s House of Blues and Athens’ Georgia Theatre beginning March 3.
