After opening the door to a more mainstream fan base in 2006 with "Nothing Left To Lose", Mat Kearney has returned with his third studio album entitled "City of Black and White." What can I tell you? It's Mat Kearney alright. He is back with more mellow, crisp acoustic-rock songs and ballads that touch the soul.
I must admit, my anticipation for this album reached an all-time high about three months ago when I watched an episode of Grey's Anatomy. If you're a fan of that show then you've probably heard at least 3 or 4 songs by Mat Kearney on there. The great thing about Mat's music is that it speaks to you lyrically and instrumentally. His songs tell a story about anything from love and dreams to wishes and revelations. It's almost as if he has a song for every emotion.
The first noticeable difference between his two previous albums, is that "City of Black and White" lacks the infamous rock/hip-hop style that Kearney is known for. In it's place, we receive straight forward acoustic-based rock songs. That's not a bad thing, though. The majority of the songs are personal with the lyrics definitely telling a story, describing thoughts or even painting a mental picture. The instrumentation on the album is almost perfect, leaving each song with gliding melodies and dynamics. With this album, songs like “Lifeline”, “Fire & Rain” and “Never Be Ready” scream out "single" with chorus's that tattoo your brain and overshadow the more bland songs like "On And On" and "Annie."
Just like "Nothing Left To Lose", Mat's new album, for the most part, let's the listener dive into their deepest thoughts, emotions and revisit some memories with music that matches life lessons with tone and melody. All in all, it's a soothing, inspiring record and a good effort from Mat Kearney.
Rating: 3/5
Track-listing:
"All I Have"
"Fire and Rain" *
"Closer to Love" *
"Here We Go" *
"Lifeline" *
"New York to California"
"Runaway Car"
"Never Be Ready" *
"Annie"
"Straight Away"
"On and On"
"City of Black & White" *
No comments:
Post a Comment