.indulgecountry
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"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jun 25, 2015 1:44:33 GMT -5
"Young and in Love" sounds great. I loved his last two albums so I'm not surprised that I like what I'm hearing so far from the new record. I think that "Young and in Love" and the one with Lady Antebellum are both great though and either one would probably do quite well at radio. I have a feeling that Hunter might be a better artist after he hits puberty. How long were you sitting on that one?
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Ten Pound Hammer
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Post by Ten Pound Hammer on Jun 25, 2015 11:02:32 GMT -5
I have a feeling that Hunter might be a better artist after he hits puberty. How long were you sitting on that one? I know, I couldn't resist. In seriousness, I think the song isn't that bad, but Hunter is just too mannered and too young-sounding to pull it off.
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johnm1120
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Post by johnm1120 on Jun 25, 2015 12:48:28 GMT -5
How long were you sitting on that one? I know, I couldn't resist. In seriousness, I think the song isn't that bad, but Hunter is just too mannered and too young-sounding to pull it off. He's a tenor in a genre that is mainly filled with baritones/baritenors, which may be where the "too-young sounding" comes from. Anyways, I like it.
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Ten Pound Hammer
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Post by Ten Pound Hammer on Jun 25, 2015 13:15:55 GMT -5
I know, I couldn't resist. In seriousness, I think the song isn't that bad, but Hunter is just too mannered and too young-sounding to pull it off. He's a tenor in a genre that is mainly filled with baritones/baritenors, which may be where the "too-young sounding" comes from. He is a tenor, but it's more in the timbre of his voice. There are plenty of tenors who still have a maturity to their delivery (for instance: Keith Urban, Collin Raye, Gary LeVox, Vince Gill), but it's also that his voice still has a thinness to it that makes him sound much younger, and the fact that he still looks 14 as well doesn't help. He's a lot like Bryan White in that regard. I will grant that he does come across as very articulate and reasonably intelligent in interviews. Again, I don't really dislike Hunter, even if I snark about him a lot. I thought "Wanted" was a weakly-written song, but it at least made sense given both his age and his fanbase's age. I also thought that his lighter delivery made "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me" not sound like a whiny complaint, and that most of the rest of his repertoire was at least reasonably suited to the limitations of his voice. This is just the first one I've thought was an egregious mismatch to his style: even if he didn't have that youthful thinness to his voice, his musical persona and delivery seem too "nice" to make the song fully work for me. To my ears, it's not too dissimilar to, say, Alison Krauss trying to sing "Gunpowder & Lead".
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onebuffalo
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Post by onebuffalo on Jun 25, 2015 13:22:51 GMT -5
He's a tenor in a genre that is mainly filled with baritones/baritenors, which may be where the "too-young sounding" comes from. He is a tenor, but it's more in the timbre of his voice. There are plenty of tenors who still have a maturity to their delivery (for instance: Keith Urban, Collin Raye, Gary LeVox, Vince Gill), but it's also that his voice still has a thinness to it that makes him sound much younger, and the fact that he still looks 14 as well doesn't help. He's a lot like Bryan White in that regard. I will grant that he does come across as very articulate and reasonably intelligent in interviews. Again, I don't really dislike Hunter, even if I snark about him a lot. I thought "Wanted" was a weakly-written song, but it at least made sense given both his age and his fanbase's age. I also thought that his lighter delivery made "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me" not sound like a whiny complaint, and that most of the rest of his repertoire was at least reasonably suited to the limitations of his voice. This is just the first one I've thought was an egregious mismatch to his style: even if he didn't have that youthful thinness to his voice, his musical persona and delivery seem too "nice" to make the song fully work for me. To my ears, it's not too dissimilar to, say, Alison Krauss trying to sing "Gunpowder & Lead". Or Miranda Lambert singing Whiskey Lullaby.
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.indulgecountry
Diamond Member
Best Country Poster 2011, 2017, & 2018
"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jun 25, 2015 13:38:41 GMT -5
Again, I don't really dislike Hunter, even if I snark about him a lot. I thought "Wanted" was a weakly-written song, but it at least made sense given both his age and his fanbase's age. I also thought that his lighter delivery made "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me" not sound like a whiny complaint, and that most of the rest of his repertoire was at least reasonably suited to the limitations of his voice. This is just the first one I've thought was an egregious mismatch to his style: even if he didn't have that youthful thinness to his voice, his musical persona and delivery seem too "nice" to make the song fully work for me. To my ears, it's not too dissimilar to, say, Alison Krauss trying to sing "Gunpowder & Lead". I can agree with you about him seeming well-mannered and all and I totally agree with the idea of Alison Krauss singing "Gunpowder & Lead" being strange, but are you really comparing this song to that? I mean, this is a song about being young and partying when you turn 21, which seems appropriate to me given that Hunter Hayes is only 23 currently. We're not talking about Hunter singing about how he's gonna murder an abusive significant other here. Just because he's an intelligent guy and seems pretty straight-laced doesn't mean he can't have "fun." Or Miranda Lambert singing Whiskey Lullaby. I must voice that I completely disagree with this. I think Miranda would sound lovely singing "Whiskey Lullaby." She's routinely showed that she can do softer songs just as well as ones like "Gunpowder & Lead" and "Kerosene."
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onebuffalo
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Post by onebuffalo on Jun 25, 2015 13:39:57 GMT -5
^I don't see it. Alison Krauss' vocals are too hauntingly beautiful for Miranda Lambert to copy.
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Ten Pound Hammer
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Post by Ten Pound Hammer on Jun 25, 2015 14:28:23 GMT -5
Again, I don't really dislike Hunter, even if I snark about him a lot. I thought "Wanted" was a weakly-written song, but it at least made sense given both his age and his fanbase's age. I also thought that his lighter delivery made "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me" not sound like a whiny complaint, and that most of the rest of his repertoire was at least reasonably suited to the limitations of his voice. This is just the first one I've thought was an egregious mismatch to his style: even if he didn't have that youthful thinness to his voice, his musical persona and delivery seem too "nice" to make the song fully work for me. To my ears, it's not too dissimilar to, say, Alison Krauss trying to sing "Gunpowder & Lead". I can agree with you about him seeming well-mannered and all and I totally agree with the idea of Alison Krauss singing "Gunpowder & Lead" being strange, but are you really comparing this song to that? I mean, this is a song about being young and partying when you turn 21, which seems appropriate to me given that Hunter Hayes is only 23 currently. We're not talking about Hunter singing about how he's gonna murder an abusive significant other here. Just because he's an intelligent guy and seems pretty straight-laced doesn't mean he can't have "fun." I'm not saying that he can't have fun. Just that this doesn't seem like the kind of fun he'd have. I'd probably grow to like it after a few more listens, but my first impression is that it just doesn't feel like him. The "like Alison Krauss singing 'Gunpowder & Lead'" comment was an attempt to explain how I think that the song seems like a poor match to his musical and vocal style, but maybe I overshot it a little.
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.indulgecountry
Diamond Member
Best Country Poster 2011, 2017, & 2018
"You left a mark on my face // And brought a dozen red flags in a vase"
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Post by .indulgecountry on Jun 25, 2015 14:34:58 GMT -5
^I don't see it. Alison Krauss' vocals are too hauntingly beautiful for Miranda Lambert to copy. Copy? No. But I can think of a lot of artists who could do Alison's part in the song justice, and Miranda Lambert is one of them. Mickey Guyton, for instance, killed it with Brad Paisley on his summer tour.
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onebuffalo
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Post by onebuffalo on Jun 25, 2015 14:37:32 GMT -5
^I don't see it. Alison Krauss' vocals are too hauntingly beautiful for Miranda Lambert to copy. Copy? No. But I can think of a lot of artists who could do Alison's part in the song justice, and Miranda Lambert is one of them. Mickey Guyton, for instance, killed it with Brad Paisley on his summer tour. I like Miranda Lambert. She sounds just wonderful on The House That Built Me. However, she screams in Gunpowder & Lead and sounds like a trainwreck on Fastest Girl In Town. Otherwise, Dolly Parton can sing Whiskey Lullaby with Brad Paisley.
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McCreerian
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Post by McCreerian on Jun 25, 2015 14:41:10 GMT -5
I can agree with you about him seeming well-mannered and all and I totally agree with the idea of Alison Krauss singing "Gunpowder & Lead" being strange, but are you really comparing this song to that? I mean, this is a song about being young and partying when you turn 21, which seems appropriate to me given that Hunter Hayes is only 23 currently. We're not talking about Hunter singing about how he's gonna murder an abusive significant other here. Just because he's an intelligent guy and seems pretty straight-laced doesn't mean he can't have "fun." I'm not saying that he can't have fun. Just that this doesn't seem like the kind of fun he'd have. Oh come on, you know Hunter is just one step away from Bieber-type headlines! Just waiting for that mugshot!
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onebuffalo
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Post by onebuffalo on Jun 25, 2015 14:42:45 GMT -5
I'm not saying that he can't have fun. Just that this doesn't seem like the kind of fun he'd have. Oh come on, you know Hunter is just one step away from Bieber-type headlines! Just waiting for that mugshot! Personally, I'm waiting for the Hunter Hayes Calvin Klein campaign.
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Kanenrá:ke
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Post by Kanenrá:ke on Jun 25, 2015 19:36:25 GMT -5
I can agree with you about him seeming well-mannered and all and I totally agree with the idea of Alison Krauss singing "Gunpowder & Lead" being strange, but are you really comparing this song to that? I mean, this is a song about being young and partying when you turn 21, which seems appropriate to me given that Hunter Hayes is only 23 currently. We're not talking about Hunter singing about how he's gonna murder an abusive significant other here. Just because he's an intelligent guy and seems pretty straight-laced doesn't mean he can't have "fun." I'm not saying that he can't have fun. Just that this doesn't seem like the kind of fun he'd have. I'd probably grow to like it after a few more listens, but my first impression is that it just doesn't feel like him. The "like Alison Krauss singing 'Gunpowder & Lead'" comment was an attempt to explain how I think that the song seems like a poor match to his musical and vocal style, but maybe I overshot it a little. No he wasn't comparing the songs, he was comparing the singer to the content. He's saying "21" is to Hunter as "Gunpowder & Lead" is to Alison. Which I agree with actually, this doesn't sound like Hunter. My experience when I met him and his other material and interviews doesn't mesh well with this type of song imo.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2015 21:35:04 GMT -5
The video for "21" will be out tomorrow!
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hosssulpizio
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Post by hosssulpizio on Jun 26, 2015 23:52:07 GMT -5
Wikipedia says "21" is a Bro Country song. What do y'all think about that?
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sabre14
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Post by sabre14 on Jun 27, 2015 12:49:21 GMT -5
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2015 13:56:18 GMT -5
Wikipedia says "21" is a Bro Country song. What do y'all think about that? I think that because Wikipedia can be edited by anyone, it's the opinion of whoever edited the "21" page (so, one person's opinion) that "21" is bro-country.
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Ten Pound Hammer
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Post by Ten Pound Hammer on Jun 27, 2015 15:25:42 GMT -5
Wikipedia says "21" is a Bro Country song. What do y'all think about that? I think that because Wikipedia can be edited by anyone, it's the opinion of whoever edited the "21" page (so, one person's opinion) that "21" is bro-country. Yeah, that happens a lot. "Sangria" got labeled as bro-country too, but the general rule is to use only the most generic genre. "Country" is sufficient.
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samsager3
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Post by samsager3 on Jun 27, 2015 23:04:35 GMT -5
I actually like this more than any of his releases from his last album.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2015 23:24:37 GMT -5
Hoping this makes a great Hot 100 run.
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someguy
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Post by someguy on Jun 28, 2015 5:40:25 GMT -5
Wikipedia says "21" is a Bro Country song. What do y'all think about that? I somewhat like the song, but I'd say it's more Kidz Bop country than Bro Country.
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hosssulpizio
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Post by hosssulpizio on Jun 30, 2015 20:43:08 GMT -5
Lol you might be right.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 1, 2015 15:01:54 GMT -5
This song is so just infectious. It's fluff but good fluff.
I still feel a Top 15 will be the max.
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sabre14
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Post by sabre14 on Sept 9, 2015 11:45:25 GMT -5
"21" has lost 96 spins and 950k in total MB audience over the past seven days, and only 250-300k of that is from Westwood One. In fact, Hunter's only gained 800k in total audience over the past 30 days. The sales haven't been anything special either as "21" is just #392 ob the all-genre chart.
I will say that 365k in audience lost was from this song getting knocked out of the top 30 on MB last week (which was reflected in Monday's update) but even adding the losses from that day and Westwood One up, this song has still lost over 300k in audience over the past week.
Hunter was not an A-lister when he went to #1 with "I Want Crazy" but it was certainly heading that direction. But ever since "Invisible", its been downright painful to watch Hunter's performance at radio.
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Ten Pound Hammer
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Post by Ten Pound Hammer on Sept 9, 2015 16:27:27 GMT -5
I think the quality of his material isn't helping him. Everything he's put out save for "Storm Warning" has been light fluffy, mostly acoustic teenybopper material; half boy band, half "white guy with guitar". I actually did like "I Want Crazy", "Somebody's Heartbreak", and "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me", but I wouldn't all any of his songs being substantial and amazing. "Wanted" was just generic meaningless lovey-dovery mush that no one over 14 would believe for a second.
On one hand, he does have a unique sound and gimmick, but on the other hand, youthfulness is such a fleeting demographic. I think that if he wants to maintain his career, he needs to grow up — and while one could argue that this song is at least an attempt at "growing up", I've made it clear upthread that I don't think it's a good attempt. He does strike me as intelligent and articulate in conversation, so I'm sure that he can make at least a little bit more substance, and stop chasing the teenybopper crowd.
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Kat5Kind
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Post by Kat5Kind on Sept 9, 2015 16:30:53 GMT -5
He needs to go back to being himself. I want him to bring back Jet Black Mustang and release it.
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sabre14
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Post by sabre14 on Sept 30, 2015 11:32:45 GMT -5
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Kat5Kind
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Post by Kat5Kind on Sept 30, 2015 11:39:19 GMT -5
As excited as I am about that, it kind of worries me after the mess they made with Storyline.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2015 11:39:55 GMT -5
Oh gosh this is just why?! I'm not a fan of artists releasing such small project and hearing Hunter Hayes is making this only 7 songs and then to hear it's a mix of live acoustic and studio that's just doesn't seem right. It's more of my opinion but I just prefer hearing a studio recording cause that shows what exactly is the songs influence whether it be pop country R&B or whatever it is acoustic I find it difficult to tell the influence of the song unless it's blatantly obvious (Leave The Night On)
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 30, 2015 12:09:47 GMT -5
As excited as I am about that, it kind of worries me after the mess they made with Storyline. For someone in Hunter's position, I think an EP is a smarter idea than a full-length album; it's an "insurance policy" of sorts. An EP with seven songs would be minimal for the label, and the public's response to these songs will likely give the label an idea if people would support more new music from him. Hunter has a younger demographic, but based on the performance of his last few singles, the label is probably cautious and has to gauge whether Hunter has the fanbase behind him to keep his career going. Albums, promotion, etc. come down to whether the label can make a profit off the artist, and right now, Hunter is on shaky ground in terms of public support, airplay, etc. He'll likely need to be at least moderately successful this time around before his label will spend the money to promote a full studio album.
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