Sound Off: Is Lindsay Ell’s ‘Criminal’ a Hit? [Listen]

Lindsay Ell‘s new single “Criminal” is a made-for-radio love song likely to become her biggest hit. The easily accessible, guitar-fueled country-rocker is a centered effort with less daring instrumentation and production than other possible singles.

Fred Wilhelm and the versatile Chris Stevens helped Ell write “Criminal,” a song that finds the singer enduring the early torment of a young love. She’s lost control of mind, body and soul as she chases an insatiable desire to be with her man. He’s guilty of theft in the worst way, and the singer’s vocal performance is nothing short of convincing.

The song is the oldest on Ell’s The Project album and the one that builds a bridge from her old sound to V2.0 found on a daring, country-blues album. Mainstream production supports strong vocals and enough guitar to fit her brand, but not too much that radio stations reach for something else.

Did You Know?: Ell’s 2017 studio album The Project is among Taste of Country’s 10 Best of 2017. It was produced by Sugarland‘s Kristian Bush.

See the Best Country Albums of 2017

Lindsay Ell’s ‘Criminal’ Lyrics:

I don’t want to close my eyes / Why pretend I’m gonna sleep when i know damn well I’m gonna keep / Laying here wide awake for the breath you take to come back / I can’t relax, I’m a tiger placed in my cage, cocked like a 12 gauge / Feeling like a teenage crush, you’re a rush / You’re the habit I can never get enough of.

Chorus:
Boy, what you do to me is criminal / Baby when I look in those eyes / I feel like going through stop lights, looking at the cops like, I got nothing to lose / Yeah, boy got me burning like a matchstick, take me to the edge and one step past it / It ain’t right, it ain’t typical / Boy what you do to me is criminal.

I have the right to remain silent / But there ain’t no way that I can / Cause I’m wired like a ticking time bomb, it’s so wrong, but it feels right / Tonight, your repeating like an echo, baby I can’t let go, got me going clepto like a thief / Yeah I’d steal, just to keep on feeling what I feel.

Oh, oh, Don’t try to save me / Oh oh, you’re never gonna save me.

This Article Was Originally Posted at www.TasteofCountry.com

http://tasteofcountry.com/lindsay-ell-criminal/

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