Nevertheless, with great songs like "Grandpa," "Small Town USA," and "If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away" in his catalog, I always pay attention to what he's releasing. On Friday, August 12th, Moore's album Kinda Don't Care dropped, and along with it came news that he's tried out some contemporary country elements. Not that he wasn't somewhat contemporary before, from the distorted guitar to certain lyrical tropes, but now he's thrown drum loops, gratuitous vocal effects, and synthy nonsense into his songs. The only instance where it kinda works is "Somebody Else Will," which is one of the few standout tracks on the album.
Even if Kinda Don't Care wasn't littered with artificial sounds, I'm not positive that I'd like it all that much, anyway. Justin Moore does not come off as authentic to me, which is key when it comes to playing and promoting country music that leans in a more traditional direction. By this point, it might be better for him to drop the shtick and just release a contemporary album.
There are an astounding number of bad songs on this record. I just can't wrap my head around how some of these tunes seemed like good ideas. "Put Me in a Box" is a title that had my hopes up, but it's incredibly awkward as Moore continually sings "Put me in a box, girl, put me in a box." It's a refrain that was old the first time it was sung but it's completely overdone in this song and Moore's vocal performance does nothing to make it better. Eventually, a tune called "Got it Good" starts playing and I begged it to stop after the very first note. Easily the most commercial track that Moore has ever recorded, "Got it Good" is egregiously pandering, to the point that it's almost funny. This song is, quite frankly, a disaster, and to hear Justin Moore sink so low is not unexpected but still kind of sad. Hold on a second, though--it gets worse. Moore includes a duet with Brantley Gilbert on Kinda Don't Care called "More Middle Fingers" and it's as bad as it sounds. In a way it's hilarious, because you've got two over-exaggerated vocal styles trading lines in one song, Moore with his twang and Gilbert with his silly growl-vocals. Unintended comedy at its finest.
At the very least there are a handful of really good songs like the lead single, "You Look Like I Need a Drink." The aforementioned "Somebody Else Will" is the only contemporary-leaning song that works on the album, thanks to a great chorus. "Rebel Kids" is also a tolerable song that I found myself nodding my head to. I trust Justin Moore to release some great music, but I really want to see him just make music as opposed to selling a country boy image. His best music will come when he's an artist first and foremost. Sadly, that hasn't happened yet.
Kinda Don't Care is without a doubt Justin Moore's least enjoyable album to date. I don't know if all of these artificial additions are the result of label pressure or if he simply wants to be an A-list country star, but they cheapen his already limited sound and result in a truly disappointing album. 3/10
Standout Tracks:
"You Look Like I Need a Drink"
"Somebody Else Will"
"Rebel Kids"
Need a Good Laugh?
"Put Me in a Box"
"Got it Good"
"More Middle Fingers"
There are an astounding number of bad songs on this record. I just can't wrap my head around how some of these tunes seemed like good ideas. "Put Me in a Box" is a title that had my hopes up, but it's incredibly awkward as Moore continually sings "Put me in a box, girl, put me in a box." It's a refrain that was old the first time it was sung but it's completely overdone in this song and Moore's vocal performance does nothing to make it better. Eventually, a tune called "Got it Good" starts playing and I begged it to stop after the very first note. Easily the most commercial track that Moore has ever recorded, "Got it Good" is egregiously pandering, to the point that it's almost funny. This song is, quite frankly, a disaster, and to hear Justin Moore sink so low is not unexpected but still kind of sad. Hold on a second, though--it gets worse. Moore includes a duet with Brantley Gilbert on Kinda Don't Care called "More Middle Fingers" and it's as bad as it sounds. In a way it's hilarious, because you've got two over-exaggerated vocal styles trading lines in one song, Moore with his twang and Gilbert with his silly growl-vocals. Unintended comedy at its finest.
At the very least there are a handful of really good songs like the lead single, "You Look Like I Need a Drink." The aforementioned "Somebody Else Will" is the only contemporary-leaning song that works on the album, thanks to a great chorus. "Rebel Kids" is also a tolerable song that I found myself nodding my head to. I trust Justin Moore to release some great music, but I really want to see him just make music as opposed to selling a country boy image. His best music will come when he's an artist first and foremost. Sadly, that hasn't happened yet.
Kinda Don't Care is without a doubt Justin Moore's least enjoyable album to date. I don't know if all of these artificial additions are the result of label pressure or if he simply wants to be an A-list country star, but they cheapen his already limited sound and result in a truly disappointing album. 3/10
Standout Tracks:
"You Look Like I Need a Drink"
"Somebody Else Will"
"Rebel Kids"
Need a Good Laugh?
"Put Me in a Box"
"Got it Good"
"More Middle Fingers"
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