Mo Pitney's Sound is Great, but Behind This Guitar is Too Damn Cheesy

I want to be a huge fan of Mo Pitney. He has everything we want in a young country star--a throwback sound, songwriting chops, wit and charm and, most importantly, a voice of gold. All that being said, his first major label release Behind This Guitar is like an unending audio Hallmark card and for those of us who can't stand overly sentimental bullshit, it's almost unbearable at times.

Make no mistake, there are a handful of great songs on the album, but it's the hokey nonsense that drowns everything else out. I found myself excited during one song only to be cringing repeatedly during the next. Songs like "Clean Up in Aisle Five" are obnoxiously melodramatic. Art is meant to be a medium through which we can express things we can't in every day life--we're free to use hyperbole, to be melodramatic, to flirt with certain lines we can't normally, but there's a way to do it, and Mo Pitney can't seem to find that balance.

Even lead single "Country" has its eventual downfall in the latter half of the song when an arbitrary nod to our military members is added out of the blue. It's blatantly disrespectful to use others' military service as a means to sell singles and albums, and while I don't think Mo Pitney knows any better and did not do this intentionally, I'm hoping that in the future he'll just release songs specifically about being respectful and thankful to our veterans and those currently serving our country. This whole arbitrary "thanks guys" thing has gotten out of hand in country music and reeks of ignorance and nearsightedness.

Album highlights include "Come Do a Little Life," perhaps the only sentimental song where Pitney doesn't take it too far, Current single "Everywhere" leans in a more contemporary direction but it's well done and very interesting. "I Met Merle Haggard Today" is funny, endearing, and, considering Haggard's death in 2016, very timely. "Boy & a Girl Thing" has a nice groove and is easy to sing along to. Aside from these four songs, however, I find the album either too melodramatic or very uninteresting.

Mo Pitney has plenty of potential, and I certainly think he will be a great artist at some point in his career. Unfortunately, he's currently missing the mark. Thankfully, his current issues are very correctable and shouldn't be hindrances later in his career. 4/10