By Shelby Parker
Staff Writer
Country sensation Keith Urban released his seventh album, “Fuse”, on Sept. 10. His first single from the album, “Little Bit Of Everything” proves there really is a little bit of everything for everyone, ranging from country to rock and a little bit of pop.
It’sunlike what he has done in the past, but fans will recognize the traditional roots with his descriptive lyrics and guitar solos.Doing something unusualisn’t what Urban necessarily set out to do. He explains to Yahoo! Music, “I didn’t really start from wanting to make an album that sounded different. I just had a different sound in my head.” He also explains that it’s something that has been in his head for awhile, but it took some time to really fine tune it to where he wanted it to be.
Several tracks on the album, like “Cop Car,” “Shame,” “Heart Like Mine” and “Come Back To Me” have the same essence of those heart felt melodies that have followed Keith around for the past several albums.
Urban told Yahoo! Music, “I think the main challenge for me was always finding the balance between keeping myself open to go new ways to go whilst not losing my focus.” It seems that he accomplishes that with this album.
However, he branches out with songs like, “Even The Stars Fall 4 U,” “Love’s Poster Child” and “Red Camaro,” which have a bit of an‘80s Rock vibe to it with some funkier beats and electric guitars in the background.
No Keith Urban album would be complete if it didn’t have catchy hooks and plenty of “Ooh’s” that you can bob your head along to. Tracks including, “She’s My 11,” “Little Bit Of Everything,” “Gonna B Good,” and “Black Leather Jacket,” do exactly that.
Urban told USA Today, “This was the album where I want to take that to the next level-maybe synthesized keyboards, some programmed things, in addition to more organic instruments, not only the six-string banjo, but also the bouzouki, the mandolin, acoustic guitar-and find new ways to fuse all those sounds together,” hence the name Fuse.
Not only does Urban experiment with a variety of instruments, he also duets with Miranda Lambert, for his current single, “We Were Us,” and Eric Church on the track “Raise ‘Em Up.”
In addition, “Fuse” gave Urban the chance to also go to another level of creativity by working with eight different producers, including Butch Walker, who produced Fall Out Boy’s “My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark.” That song gave Keith the inspiration to mess around a bit more with his already finished product of “Even The Stars Fall 4 U” because he was “riveted by the sound of the track,” according to Yahoo! Music.
One thing is for sure, no matter what genre of music Keith Urban makes, it’s going to be good.
According to an interview with USA Today, Urban said, “I make whatever records I make, I don’t even think of them in terms of genre. They’re just me and my sound. This album was seeing where I could take my sound, and, in the process, maybe that’s a particular kind of country music in 2014.”
