Young, Jannakos, Louris offer new sounds
Friday, June 4, 2021 – Brett Young leads the short list of releases out today with an eight-song effort, "Weekends Look a Little Different These Days." What's looking different is that Young now is a father since his last release, "Welcome to L.A." from 2019. Among the eight songs is "Lady." The hit song was an ode to his wife, Taylor, and 19-month-old daughter, Presley Elizabeth.
Newcomer Andrew Jannakos, a 27-year-old Georgian, puts out a six-song EP, "Gone Too Soon." The title track received a chunk of airplay. Jannakoks first gained notoriety as a contestant on Season 16 of The Voice. His current single is "Wine Country."
Gary Louris is best known as the front man of The Jayhawks. Written, performed and produced entirely by Louris himself, "Jump For Joy" is his first solo release since 2008's "Vagabonds." Louris recorded the music in his home studio, featuring 10 never-before-released songs written over the last couple of decades and cover art illustrated by his son, Henry Louris. The new album follows The Jayhawks' 2020 release "XOXO."
More news
- 05/29/24: Young extends tour
- 12/04/23: Young heads overseas
- 08/04/23: Young, Gill/Franklin, Zimmerman, King Calaway release new albums
- 06/26/23: Young spreads out "Across the Sheets"
- 11/28/22: Young plans '23 tour
- 06/30/22: Young goes 8x Platinum
- 02/18/22: Young's "You Didn't" video drops
- 05/15/21: Jannakos plans EP
CD reviews
Brett Young's Christmas EP is a strange little thing. Like many holiday project creators, Young prefers to look backwards, rather than forward. Hence the phrase 'Christmas Classics' in the album title. Nostalgia is always huge in country music, so this approach makes some sense. Therefore, this release is one that may cause you to travel with Scrooge back to various Christmases from the past. You also might come away feeling decidedly Scrooge-y about it.
It's strange, however, ...
It's troubling after listening to an album multiple times in a row, to not have even one song stick in one's memory. However, this is an honest initial response to Brett Young's "Weekends Look A Little Different These Days." It's not so much that the music on Young's eight-song effort is bad; it's just so utterly unremarkable.
Appreciation of Young's music rises and falls with what you think about his singing style. He sounds a little like Gary LeVox, ...
Gary Louris is, for many, the Jayhawks. Although the band's "XOXO" album from 2020 featured more contributions from his fellow bandmates than usual, it's always Louris' special singing that distinctly sets this band apart from the Americana pack. Maybe there just wasn't enough room for all his songs on that last band album, so he needed a solo disc to give them a proper home. "Jump for Joy," while still obviously a Louris album, is slightly more pop than ...
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