Court Yard Hounds, ‘Amelita’ – Album Stream

The Court Yard Hounds return with new music on July 16. 'Amelita,' the followup to the duo's critically-acclaimed self-titled album was written and recorded after Emily Robison's divorce. The result is a project that the two women say is more fun and hopeful than their last. Listen to all 11 songs before you can buy them on this Taste of Country album stream.

'Amelita' is available for pre-order at Amazon right now. Martie Maguire wrote or co-wrote seven of the 11 songs on the album, but it's Robison who does most of the lead singing. Sharp lyrics and tight harmonies are what make this project special. The lead single 'Sunshine' is a sneaky, sarcastic song about a friend who thinks a little too much of herself. Conversely, 'Phoebe' is a ballad about a suicide.

"I've been freed of all of those time-heals-everything kind of things," Robison says about how the post-divorce healing inspired her performance. "Now, I've opened up to other ideas and ways of looking at life and the world."

Make no mistake -- the Court Yard Hounds are not a side project for the Dixie Chicks sisters. A new confidence affected the recording, Maguire says. "I think we've approached it differently because we felt like okay, we are a band. We aren't just two ex-Dixie Chicks anymore, we're a band and we like our sound and we're going to continue to do this and hopefully get better at it, and share something new this time around."

*This stream has expired.