"Carrie Rodriguez has recorded the perfect bicultural album in Lola. It is the album she was born to do, what with her mother's west Texas roots and her father's Mexican American background, but she arrived at this point by collecting her own identity along the way: first classical violin, then Americana fiddle and country vocal duets with Chip Taylor. The beauty of this album is in the details. "Llano Estacado" is an emotional examination of the effects of a broken immigration policy set to what she calls a "cowboy shuffle" that she delivers by she switching between Spanish and English accented by her beautiful west Texas drawl. I don't think I have ever heard anything express so powerfully the kind of bicultural existence so many of us live."
—Felix Contreras, NPR Music
"This album came out in February and I kept waiting all year for something to come along that would possibly knock it down from my personal pedestal of Best Album of 2016. And nothing did. Here’s why: Carrie Rodriguez made a record that spoke to my own existence in a way that very few records have. After five albums with song-meister Chip Taylor and seven under her own name that explored the Americana side of her heritage (she gets her drawl from her mom’s people in west Texas), she took a deep breath and finally explored the Rodriguez side of her family history. She discovered an older relative that sang Mexican rancheras who inspired her to craft an entire album that perfectly meshes two cultures, two languages, two musical genres. Every track is a stand out but the title track, “I Dreamed I was Lola Beltran,” is such a profound statement of bicultural identity that I’m continually in awe of how she captured my life while writing about her own. With an all-star band that includes genre-busting guitarist Bill Frisell, Lola is a classic example of storytelling and a definitive statement of identity that stays with you long after that story ends."
-Felix Contreras, NPR Music
"Carrie Rodriguez is a Berklee-trained, Mexican-American fiddle player and singer whose fifth studio album was partially inspired by her great aunt, ranchera singer Eva Garza. Lola is Rodriguez's first bilingual record and includes a cover of the traditional Mexican song "Perfidia" next to breathtaking originals like "I Dreamed I Was Lola Beltrán," which imagines the life of another famous ranchera singer. But beneath the lovely melodies and effortless mutability on this crowd-funded, self-released album, there's also pointed critique: In "Z," Rodriguez sings about all the venues that have misspelled her name over the years. "Doors are gonna open if you want them to," she sings, "but you might have to knock 'em down." Her mission? "Tell country music where to put a 'z.'"
"She creates beautiful music that is always slyly smart, which in turn makes it more beautiful."
- Ben Greenman / The New Yorker
"...I have to say I am very impressed. She's got something unique in her voice that's very subtle and a little smoky and sweet. She's got a refreshingly spunky attitude to go along with it."
- Lucinda Williams / New York Times
“…her voice - at full throttle on the album’s first single, ‘I Cry for Love’—is now her primary instrument.”
- Michael Hoinski / The New York Times
“Carrie is now a star in her own right & was accompanied by Luke Jacobs who moulded his harmony vocals to the contours of Rodriguez’s voice with an appealing chemistry. Both performers engaged the audience with their personalities as well as their music”.
- David Sinclair / The London Times
"...she emerges as a superb interpretive singer, not only milking melodies for all their pleasure but also revealing new implications in the lyrics."
- Geoffrey Himes / The Washington Post
"'Fiddle' and 'deadly' don't usually appear in the same sentence together – unless you're talking about Carrie Rodriguez. Austin-born and bred and ready to take on the world."
- Jason Claypool / Denver Post
"...fine singing and scintillating fiddle work.”
“Rodriguez at her freewheeling best, an inspired mix of passion and energy that captures the spirit of her feel-the-burn live shows.”
- Michael Bialas / The Huffington Post
"There's a real earthiness in both Carrie's singing and fiddle. She's hot and steamy one minute and pure Nashville the next."
- Colin Irwin / Mojo
"A tireless, gracious and versatile performer. ...Rodriguez turned into a full-blown, passionate chica on 'La Punalada Trapera,' eliciting whoops, hollers and whistles from an adoring audience."
"...a skilled purveyor of sophisticated twang."
- Michael Berick / LA Weekly
“A well-rounded triumph”