Editors’ Notes
Brett Kissel is a rare example of a lifer; he picked up the guitar around the same time he started elementary school and released his debut record, Keepin’ It Country, at 12. He’s got bona fides, too—he grew up rural on a cattle ranch in Alberta—and you can hear it in his tunes, which retain a down-home vibe even while he plays with poppy elements like charged-up fiddle hooks and bubbly synths. Only love of the game can keep you in it so long, and like any good country boy, Kissel’s passion for the genre shines through regularly on twangers like “Started With a Song” and “I Can Play Guitar.”
