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Mat Kearney
Nothing Left To Lose
Artist Info: Discography
Album length: 13 tracks: 56 minutes, 50 seconds
Street Date: April 18, 2006
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Oregon's own Mat Kearney is the latest CCM artist to break into the mainstream market.
His flagship release is entitled Nothing Left To Lose, a repackaging of highlights from his Inpop
debut Bullet with seven brand new cuts tacked on. Some already-fans of Kearney may wonder why
such a project has been pieced together, but the answer is pretty simple. With Nothing Left To Lose
serving as an introduction of Kearney to a greater audience, why not share with them the best Bullet
had to offer as well?
Nothing Left To Lose opens with the boldly worshipful "Undeniable," one of the six smartly
chosen selections from Bullet. The title track follows, a wonderful radio-friendly song that
quickly had become a live favorite last Spring. Kearney's blend of Cold Play-esque harmonies with hip-hop
driven verses and breakdowns makes for a refreshing listen. The new songs are very much more of the same
that Bullet offered, only slightly exploring more melodic and atmospheric arrangements.
"Crashing Down" is one of the many beautifully written new tracks, bearing a theme of dependence on love
that could apply to a significant other as much as it could the Savior. "Girl America" makes the cut from
Bullet as well, and is followed by a slightly retouched rendition of the faith-inspired "In The Middle."
"Can't Break Her Fall" follows much of the same acoustic pop format Kearney has developed as his signature.
Those familiar with Bullet can pretty much predict how the song will unfold at this point, but
for listeners just getting acquainted with Kearney, it fits like a glove. "What's A Boy To Do"
offers the more stripped-down acoustic driven songwriting that Kearney presents live, lyrically
pondering the condition of a fatherless child. New track "Wait" precedes the memorable title track from
Bullet, before breaking into one of the strongest of the album's new offerings, "All I Need."
The emotionally charged piano ballad is a tenderly penned love song that builds to theatrical heights
as the song climaxes with an orchestral finish. Bullet's strongest moment, "Renaissance," perfectly
follows its worthy successor. From here, the album winds down with the sweetly reserved "Where We Gonna Go From Here"
and the closer from the previous record, the Johnny Cash inspired "Won't Back Down."
Nothing Left To Lose takes what was a strong debut and improves on it further. My only complaint
is a minor one. The acoustic "Chicago," from last Fall's rare Chicago EP, is distinctly missed here.
Otherwise, Nothing Left To Lose is a fantastic collection of pop anthems that appropriately represents
what Mat Kearney is all about. While an album of all new material is indeed due since the Fall 2004 release
of Kearney's previous record, Nothing Left To Lose will more than do, and is well worth picking
up.
- Review date: 4/15/06, written by John DiBiase
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 Artist Info: Discography
Record Label: InPop Records
Album length: 13 tracks, 56 minutes and 50 seconds
Street Date: April 18, 2006
Buy It: Musichristian.com
- Undeniable
- Nothing Left To Lose
- Crashing Down
- Girl America
- In The Middle
- Can't Break Her Fall
- What's A Boy To Do
- Wait
- Bullet
- All I Need
- Renaissance
- Where We Gonna Go From Here
- Won't Back Down
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