In Brooklyn Magazine’s “The Musical Map of the United States,” writers create a soundtrack of place association. The 50+ essays on songs and their states are sweet and sad and funny, but always specific. Sleeper hits like Emily Hilleren’s “The Rural Alberta Advantage” (North Dakota) give a very personal sense of what it means to be from somewhere:
Coming from a place known mainly for being where Mount Rushmore isn’t, North Dakotans can have a middle child’s craving for attention. Street fests still play Neal McCoy’s mediocre country hit ‘The Shake’ for its shoutout to our state capitol amidst a litany of cities.
