I came into this one not expecting this band or singing group to be much as with most of these new country packaged acts like the bloody awful Lady Antebelum or the not so terrible McClymonts or Gloriana. The trouble with these acts as they are all just faces placed together with a fake bio making them out to be some great coming together of musical genius and they are solo artists that the labels had no idea what to do with so they package em up and call them a group or duo. This isn't the first time that's happened look at the success of Brooks & Dunn or Montgomery Gentry which were packaged solo artists and sold as something real. Luckily both those acts had something more than this new crop and that is talent.
Here we have another group which looks like a country Abba or Ace Of Base unlike their country pop counterparts this act actually has some teeth. The cracks do show on absolute garbage songs like "Kiss Goodbye" and "Shut Up Train" but when they are doing music that the members actually believe in and love they sound honest. The ballad "You Can't Have Everything" is a great country tune that works nicely with all their harmonies. The song might be the albums best track on the twelve song platter. LBT do find themselves with more good music on The Reason Why than the gawd awful filler we are usually served in this new pop/adult contemporary meets country genre.
One of the albums worst tunes is "All Over Again" a professionally written song obviously because its faceless and derrivitave and could be insterted on any current country pop album sung by any of the generic singers that have come out Cashville USA in the last six or seven years. The song is so bad it should have been on Lady Antebelum's album. Then a song like "Life Rolls On" appears that erases the disastrous misstep. If your a fan of the current junk country that is really pop music with a Nashville twang mixed in for effect this album will suit you perfectly because the shit songs will be right up your alley. The really good songs will be a bonus for your investment. This is not a perfect country pop album but its fairly strong for another packaged act we are being force fed this year.
Country music needs a Nirvana to knock it down to the bricks so it can emerge from the rubble better for it all. The last time it happened it was named Randy Travis who will be country music's savior this time?
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