A little over two weeks ago, singer-songwriter Dave Barnes released his new album "Stories to Tell". While I am completely in love with Barnes and his music, I can't help but be a little disappointed in this album.
Dave Barnes has been around for quite sometime (his first album came out in 2000), but he more recently received a lot of recognition for his 2010 hit song "God Gave Me You" (which was also covered by country star Blake Shelton). However, I became a big fan of Barnes when his romantic and beautiful album "Me and You and the World" came out in 2008.
Barnes' music is usually acoustic and serene, but this new album is very different. It has more of a pop mainstream vibe, which takes away a lot of the raw beauty of Barnes' voice.
This album doesn't give the goosebumps or make me go "Awwwww" after hearing a line of sweet lyrics. It doesn't make me want to marry Dave or have a boy someday serenade me with one of these songs.
These are the reasons why I usually love Dave Barnes' CDs. His music ranges from inspiring, to spiritual, to sexy. "Stories to Tell" though is just pretty blah.
The songs all seem to blend together, but not in good way. They all sound similar, generic and unoriginal.
Songs like "White Flag" and "Stories to Tell" are more upbeat and produced songs than Barnes' usual work. Others like "Mine to Love" and "Love Will Be Enough For Us" show themes from past Dave Barnes albums, but with much more radio friendly sounding vibes and beats.
Regardless, Dave Barnes still proves himself to be wonderfully talented vocally. His albums have been getting progressively more produced and more poppy, and this album seems like a definite way for him to promote himself and gain more popularity.
Is it his best work though? How about I let you decide for yourself.
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