REVIEW--"The Big Revival"--Kenny Chesney

On September 23, 2014, Kenny Chesney released "The Big Revival", his fifteenth studio album in his twenty year career.

While it's safe to say Chesney has changed and improved over the years, it's also safe to say that his past few albums haven't changed much. There's always the fun songs, the beach songs, the reflective songs; a mix of tunes that has served Chesney well, maybe too well.

It seems that Chesney has become complacent in the music he puts out.  He's found what works, and rather than expanding and improving on it, he seems happy to just keep putting out more of the same.  Even his descriptions of songs don't seem to change from album to album.  Each one seems to be about his life, touches his feelings, tells the story of small towns, growing up in those towns, and so on.
That's not to say Chesney's music isn't good, it's just not as new and fresh as it was a few albums ago.

"The Big Revival", like Chesney's previous albums, follows the same groove and path that his fans have come to expect.  While this makes fans happy, it's not necessarily gaining him more fans, and may even possibly drive a few fans away with the tediousness of his musical choices.

"American Kids", the first single released to radio, is the typical, catchy, feel-good song that plays well on radio.  It's upbeat, all-American, small town fun in a three to four minute package.  It's the kind of song that catches your attention and makes you curious to hear more.

Unfortunately for "The Big Revival", "American Kids" is the highlight of the album.  While there are a few stand out songs, on this CD, including the title track, none quite equal the first single.  In fact, Chesney's next single, "Til It's Gone", doesn't seem as good a choice for radio as say, the title track.  Where "American Kids" is an upbeat, lively tune, "Til It's Gone", just kind of drones on and on, with nothing in the lyrics really standing out to catch your attention.

Chesney did team up with Grace Potter once again, this time for the tune "Wild Child".  This song is actually not too bad, and would be a good choice for a future single.

That's pretty much "The Big Revival" in a nutshell.  Just change the title of the CD, the song titles, and twist the music around a bit, and that's it, you've got a Kenny Chesney album; nothing really new to hear, but good if you like to stay in a comfort zone with music.

REVIEW--Jake Owen--"Barefoot Blue Jean Night"

Since his first hit, “Yee Haw”, Jake Owen has gained fans with his style of country music. His first CD showed an artist who could have a good time partying, yet still have a soft, emotional side. With his third CD, “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”, Owen still has this same theme, but seems to have mellowed a bit, even on the partying songs.

Except for the title track and current single, there doesn’t seem to be a really “stand-out” song on “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”. The eleven tracks seem to blend together and kind of all sound the same for the most part; including the “party” songs.

The softer songs on this CD are pretty run of the mill, and could be switched out with just about any other song out nowadays.

The upbeat, party songs seem muted. It’s like instead of being *at* the party, the listener is left outside, to look in on what’s going on. You can see the party, but the sound is muffled and muted in comparison to actually being there. This is especially evident on “Nobody Feelin’ No Pain”. The song could easily be a rowdy, party anthem; yet it falls just short of being a full blown party song. The lyrics are there, and the song really does try to rock, however Owen’s delivery doesn’t quite have the emphasis needed to produce the effect.

Fans of Jake Owen will probably be happy with the tracks on “Barefoot Blue Jean Night”, mainly because it’s typical Jake Owen music. Unfortunately, what happens with this CD is what usually happens when things are duplicated too often; you can tell it’s the same, even though it just gets muddier and muddier as the duplication continues.

Bottom line, if you like Jake Owen and his style of music, you’ll probably like this CD; but if you’re looking for something new from Jake, you won’t find it here.