In her “EW” interview, Carrie was adamant that she is a country artist. And that comes through loud and clear from the opening note of her new album, “Carnival Ride.”
But if that opening number doesn’t convince you, the story-filled songs and Carrie’s twangy voice will. In fact, at times, Carrie tries a little too hard to remind us she’s a country artist.
And when she’s not doing that, she’s trying WAY too hard to remind us of her powerhouse voice…
The first track, “Flat On the Floor,” is pure country with even a little bit of a bluegrass feel. But the lyrics aren’t all that great and Carrie’s vocal goes a tad over the top…
“All-American Girl” is the first of the story songs. This one is the story of a girl who wraps men around her finger—first her dad and then her quarterback boyfriend. It’s not a very strong story, though, and once again, Carrie’s vocals are too much…
I was finally to the point where I almost liked “So Small.” But as the third track on this CD, it comes off as grating after all the other over-the-top vocals…
“Just a Dream,” another story song, will no doubt be a #1 smash. It’s the story of a wife whose military husband doesn’t come home. It’s a tough one to swallow, but it’s pretty and I think it will really resonate…
“Get Out of This Town” is pretty much just filler material, but it’s nice to hear Carrie tone it down…
“Crazy Dreams” is the first real toe-tapper on the CD. It’s got a good beat and fun lyrics…
“I Know You Won’t” starts out as a strong slow ballad, but then it disintegrates into Carrie banging that voice over our head again. It probably would have worked a little better if it had more lyrics than just, “You said you’d call, but I know you won’t.” It’s almost like the songwriters just got tired…
“Last Name” could be the “Before He Cheats” of this CD. Just like “Cheats,” I find it hard to believe Carrie as the song’s main character—a girl who gets drunk and ends up with a strange guy—but the song is so catchy, you can look over it. It does, however, repeat the chorus one time too many…
“You Won’t Find This” is the strongest song on the CD. It’s got a catchy chorus and Carrie shows some welcome restraint…
“I Told You So” is a cover of a Randy Travis song. Carrie plays it pretty close to the original and it’s a good song for her…
“The More Boys I Meet” starts out really strong with a really good beat and a catchy chorus. Then Carrie gets to the point—“The more boys I meet, the more I love my dog”—and it falls flat as a pancake. I realize it’s supposed to be funny, but it just doesn’t work for me…
“Twisted” has a nice original sound, but suffers a little without a catchy chorus…
The CD concludes with “Wheel of the World,” a moody slow ballad. I can’t really hear it as a single, but it’s a good song and a good finish to the CD…
So what’s the bottom line here? Do I like it or not?
I want to say I do, but I just can’t…
As you guys know, I am not a country music fan. And since this one is purely country, I probably started out with a negative opinion from the get-go.
And “Carnival Ride” doesn’t really do a lot to change my mind. I like Carrie and I think she’s got a great voice, but not every song needs a really high note that you hold forever.
Plus, the songwriting just doesn’t measure up this time around. Since I don’t have the songwriting credits, I don’t know how much of that I can blame on Carrie, but I have a sneaking suspicion it’s quite a bit.
I admire her, though, for sticking to her guns and going straight country with this one—even though it will probably mean a loss of fans.
And yes, that probably includes me, since I won’t be adding this one to my collection…
You can hear “Carnival Ride” for yourself here. Be sure to let me know what you think…
But if that opening number doesn’t convince you, the story-filled songs and Carrie’s twangy voice will. In fact, at times, Carrie tries a little too hard to remind us she’s a country artist.
And when she’s not doing that, she’s trying WAY too hard to remind us of her powerhouse voice…
The first track, “Flat On the Floor,” is pure country with even a little bit of a bluegrass feel. But the lyrics aren’t all that great and Carrie’s vocal goes a tad over the top…
“All-American Girl” is the first of the story songs. This one is the story of a girl who wraps men around her finger—first her dad and then her quarterback boyfriend. It’s not a very strong story, though, and once again, Carrie’s vocals are too much…
I was finally to the point where I almost liked “So Small.” But as the third track on this CD, it comes off as grating after all the other over-the-top vocals…
“Just a Dream,” another story song, will no doubt be a #1 smash. It’s the story of a wife whose military husband doesn’t come home. It’s a tough one to swallow, but it’s pretty and I think it will really resonate…
“Get Out of This Town” is pretty much just filler material, but it’s nice to hear Carrie tone it down…
“Crazy Dreams” is the first real toe-tapper on the CD. It’s got a good beat and fun lyrics…
“I Know You Won’t” starts out as a strong slow ballad, but then it disintegrates into Carrie banging that voice over our head again. It probably would have worked a little better if it had more lyrics than just, “You said you’d call, but I know you won’t.” It’s almost like the songwriters just got tired…
“Last Name” could be the “Before He Cheats” of this CD. Just like “Cheats,” I find it hard to believe Carrie as the song’s main character—a girl who gets drunk and ends up with a strange guy—but the song is so catchy, you can look over it. It does, however, repeat the chorus one time too many…
“You Won’t Find This” is the strongest song on the CD. It’s got a catchy chorus and Carrie shows some welcome restraint…
“I Told You So” is a cover of a Randy Travis song. Carrie plays it pretty close to the original and it’s a good song for her…
“The More Boys I Meet” starts out really strong with a really good beat and a catchy chorus. Then Carrie gets to the point—“The more boys I meet, the more I love my dog”—and it falls flat as a pancake. I realize it’s supposed to be funny, but it just doesn’t work for me…
“Twisted” has a nice original sound, but suffers a little without a catchy chorus…
The CD concludes with “Wheel of the World,” a moody slow ballad. I can’t really hear it as a single, but it’s a good song and a good finish to the CD…
So what’s the bottom line here? Do I like it or not?
I want to say I do, but I just can’t…
As you guys know, I am not a country music fan. And since this one is purely country, I probably started out with a negative opinion from the get-go.
And “Carnival Ride” doesn’t really do a lot to change my mind. I like Carrie and I think she’s got a great voice, but not every song needs a really high note that you hold forever.
Plus, the songwriting just doesn’t measure up this time around. Since I don’t have the songwriting credits, I don’t know how much of that I can blame on Carrie, but I have a sneaking suspicion it’s quite a bit.
I admire her, though, for sticking to her guns and going straight country with this one—even though it will probably mean a loss of fans.
And yes, that probably includes me, since I won’t be adding this one to my collection…
You can hear “Carnival Ride” for yourself here. Be sure to let me know what you think…
