The elegant Kristina Train has a voice for the ages — and a resume to match. Hand-picked by Herbie Hancock to join his band, being on Bruce Springsteen’s permanent playlist, and collaborating with Dr. Dre are just a few of the highlights. The Savannah-bred, Nashville-based singer started at Blue Note Records as the last artist signed by Arif Mardin, paving her own trail between Americana, country, jazz and pop. Now, after a foray in London and appearances at the legendary Later show with Jools Holland and the BBC’s Abbey Road Sessions, Train has four critically-acclaimed albums to her credit, including her 2009 debut, Spilt Milk, plus Dark Black (on Mercury Records), Rayon City and 2022’s Body Pressure, as well as a brand new recording set for a September 2025 release: The lush and melodic County Line was produced by Colin Devlin and Kirk Pasich at Dave’s Room in Los Angeles, a space known for legendary tracks by Tom Petty, Smokey Robinson, Sam Phillips and others.

Cowritten by Train and writers including Ed Harcourt, Kim Richey, Jimmy Hogath, Mike Mattison and Paul Olsen, County Line happened almost by chance over the past couple of years. As studio availability, producers and players – including the strings of the Oklahoma Philharmonic in arrangements by Golden Globe nominated composer Brian Byrne – magically lined up, Train recorded live vocals with piano, drums, guitar, bass and pedal steel by sessioners for Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Heart and Tim McGraw.

The result is a collection that includes stunning originals, a flipside remake of Cher’s iconic anthem, “Believe,” and a trio of reinvented country classics by Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson—now sung from a strong-woman perspective in Train’s rawedge alto, which steeps each nostalgic phrase in the emotional immediacy of 2025.

Train says the album represents a culmination of life events in a rapidly changing and chaotic world. “It’s where I came from and where I’m going. Yes, I’m still trying to get there, but these songs are who I am, past and present.”

Across 11 tracks, there are lost loves, revenge, daydreaming, psychotherapy and two-stepping — all wrapped around the sweet and sorrowful tones of Train’s voice, which is at once familiar and fresh. With its stalwart major-key piano chords that evoke hymns, winsome yearning, and powerful storytelling, County Line is a parade of evocative slow grooves and honest choruses with hopeful hooks that burrow deep into memory. When Train pulls out her own violin in a reprise of the title track, it’s the perfect end cap to a tour of the modern Americana musical landscape.

County Line

“The ‘County Line’ is everywhere I've lived,” Train says. “It’s about being on the outside looking in and on the edge of whatever's happening. When I lived in New Jersey, I literally used to drive to the beach and put on Patty Griffin's Flaming Red and just stare at [New York City], and in my mind I’m thinking, ‘I'm going to cross that river’ again one day. In Nashville, I started out in this place called Rayon City, and I was always just out of the mix, in the bird's eye view.”

99 Floors

“99 floors” is about dissociation, having to take a timeout, time away from things, maybe living more in the dream world than the reality world. I tend to have my head in the clouds and sometimes the dream world can be a lot more forgiving.”

Believe

“This Cher song has been an earworm for me since it came out in 1998. I'll randomly be shopping in Kroger, and it keeps playing over and over in my head. The message is strong, and it's so empowering and conquering. And I thought, ‘What if I redid it, but looking at the other side of the coin’? And what if it was more vulnerable, as if you’re somebody who's still in the crushed state, and you're wondering, ‘I don't know if there's life after love.’ I wanted to put that feeling into it and showcase a different side of the song.”

What Does That Make Me?

“You know, I got back from England and went into analysis for 5 years, and ‘What Does that Make Me’ came out of trying to explore and understand who I am. Why do I make these choices? Where did that come from? If this isn't working for me, how can I approach this better? The song is definitely about a rut that, you know, the protagonist is being totally attracted to the wrong things. ‘So forget you. I'm not saying you're the problem, I'm saying, I need to look at myself here.’ It’s no longer something that’s happening to me, it’s something I’m in control of and capable of changing. So I think that’s powerful, taking ownership.”