Putting aside the weird, muffled sound quality of the live recording, David Cook’s Wal-Mart sound check is, for the most part, an awesome set of performances.
The songs were recorded right before the band’s Saturday Night Live gig, while David and the band were still trying to find their footing. “Light On”, with its intense vocal gymnastics, is the weakest song of the bunch. They get it together in time for their Leno performance a few weeks later, but here, David sounds a bit hoarse and unsure.
The guys simply kick ass on “Bar Ba Sol.” The heaviest song on the album, it makes me wish there were more where that came from. “Lie” is a lovely, tenderly sung rock ballad, and “Declaration” and “Heroes” are appealing mid-tempo rockers. An interview, tying up the set, has David putting an interesting perspective on the music just heard.
Like many of you, I’ve been listening to the album sneak peek, and I have to say my favorite songs change every time I listen. There are, of course, the mid-tempo rockers featuring big heavily-produced choruses. This is an Idol album after all, fashioned for maximum radio friendliness. Having said that, I believe David threw us a few of those curve balls he promised. Particularly in the songwriting, which is definitely a cut above the usual Idol fare.
I’ll post more of my thoughts when the album drops on Tuesday…
