Doin’ My Thing

Country traditionalists have wrung their hands over the past several years worrying that the genre is becoming hopelessly diluted by outside influences from pop, rock and even (gasp!) hip-hop. But if country is becoming more urbane musically, it’s headed in the opposite direction lyrically—modern mainstream radio is stuffed to bursting with songs about the old-fashioned virtues of country life and declarations of rural authenticity.

Luke Bryan’s 2007 debut, I’ll Stay Me, suffered especially acutely from an overabundance of country-boy anthems. The follow-up certainly hits that angle, but also finds Luke edging carefully into other areas of interest: He shows a knack for convincingly delivering hymns to thwarted love like the first single, “Do I,” as well as lighthearted fare like “Chuggin’ Along” and the title cut. Unfortunately, his well-sung version of OneRepublic’s pop chart-topper “Apologize” serves to demonstrate that while outside influences keep things interesting, not every song was meant to be country.