The king of country crooning is back with his 6th studio album, What Makes You Country. And while even the most diehard fans have spent the past few months patiently awaiting the release, many were still surprised he dropped a new album on December 8th mainly because he didn’t really promote it a lot until the week of.
His album prior, Kill the Lights (2015), was not the greatest of his music in my opinion. But Bryan definitely brought back what he’s known best for with What Makes You Country. And I for one, am thrilled! During his previous album, he completely dropped his best-known sound about partying. He clearly wasn’t into the “I’m a 41-year-old party boy” phase.
But as everyone knows, he is known for his songs that relate to young people, even though he’s a good 15-20 years older. And I’m sure his production team realized by trying to branch off from his labeled sound it didn’t end out well for him regarding popularity.
His identifiable party songs (you know, about hooking up, drinking, mixed emotions and having a great time) are back but slowed them down a bit. Oddly that made them more mature and really freaking good. So you got the familiarity of his traditional songs, yet you still got something new that you could relate to.
Let’s get down to the songs. You can listen to each one below and then read all about my critiques for each one.
The album is complete with 15 songs, and there’s not many I don’t like. It’s title track “What Makes You Country” will definitely continue to dominate country radio charts because it’s so upbeat and catchy. “Hooked On It” is another one. It’s country and catchy AF.
Staying true to the albums name, there are plenty about the country lifestyle. “Drinking Again” highlights that alcohol-loving most country folks love. “Most People Are Good” is a beautiful song about how he hopes for the best in humanity and helping others when you can, which is the southern mentality. It’s nice to see some unique songs about that lifestyle in a new light.
On the slower side of things, we have a great selection to choose from. “Hungover in a Hotel Room” is actually one of my favourite’s on the album. It’s a mini duet (so you can sing along) and has an intriguing story you can’t help but think about. “
Regarding relationships, this just speaks to so many millennials. The first single “Light It Up” is about waiting for that one person’s text and having anxiety about hearing from them. “Sunrise, Sunburn and Sunset” is about summer flings and spending everyday together. It’s probably my favourite! And “Bad Lovers” talks about how things are starting to fall apart and how this never used to be this way. He covers it all and makes you resonate so much with his music.
And of course, there’s plenty of songs about girls. “Out of Nowhere Girl” is typical in a sense, it’s about meeting a girl literally out of nowhere. “She’s a Hot One” is about meeting a hot mess and describes half the girls at bars these days perfectly. He has to give us country girls our new anthems, and he does not disappoint.
Those stereotypes about country songs may be true, but Luke Bryan does them so well! “Driving This Truck” is a perfect example of the stereotype (and a damn good song). I’m really glad to see Luke rediscovering his sound that will hopefully prove as successful as his last album that shows growth as a performer and staying true to what gave him his popularity, his fans.
Featured image via “Luke Bryan” by Tortuga Music Festival / CC BY-NC
