Luke Bryan Previews New Album
Luke Bryan’s 5th album, Kill The Lights, will be released this Friday. He joined Country Countdown USA’s Lon Helton this week to preview several new songs from it. This is part of their conversation:
Let’s start by talking about the fact that this new album is the follow-up to Crash My Party, that sold over 2 million copies and produced 6 straight #1 hits. How do you follow that? “That’s a daunting challenge. When we did Crash My Party, we didn’t plan to have 6 #1s. But it started feeling like we’re on such a roll, looked at the songs, and it felt like we could do 6 singles. Kill The Lights feels like, under the right circumstances, that we might be able to do that and more. It’s not like a challenge to myself, but we’re excited for Kill The Lights and how it will stand up to Crash My Party.”
A few weeks ago, you got a few of us together to hear some songs from this new album, and the one thing I noticed is it has a very different feel from the last one. “That’s good! I just got an actual CD, and now I can let it play and hear how the album takes you on a ride. I have a song on there called ‘Strip It Down,’ that’s a very sexy love song, like ‘Feels So Right’ that Alabama did, and I’ve never done that before on an album. So there are like 3 or 4 moments that I’ve never done before, and I’m excited about that.”
One of those things is you’ve never done a duet: “There you go, I’m very excited for people to hear this duet with Karen Fairchild of Little Big Town. For years people asked who’d I’d want to collaborate with. I’ve done a few, but never did a straight duet, and this song came to me from one of my producers, and I knew right away that it was something I would record. I started to think about females, and didn’t think about Karen because she’s in a group. But I ran into her at a CMA Board Meeting, and I realized she was my girl. So I emailed I to her, and she was said yes. We knocked it out and it’s going to be excited.”
We talked with Philip & Kimberly of LBT about that song, and they were also very excited about it: “I’m excited for them, because they can do it on their tour too. I assume that she will do it live with Jimi, who’s her husband. I knew we were on to something when I played it for my wife, and she was like, ‘That might be my most favorite thing I’ve heard you do. You better single that!'”
I’m not sure when you had time to write 6 songs for this album, but you do: “I wrote 50 songs for the last album, and only recorded 2 or 3. This album, I wrote 10 songs and recorded 6, so my averages are better. But it’s all about trying to find the best songs to make the album.”
Talk about Razor Blade: “That’s a new thing for me, a darker take on how a girl can cut you, everything about her is danger, and the production is different, it’s a darker song, well crafted song, and that chorus is written very well.”
One more song: Huntin’ Fishin’ & Lovin’ Every Day: “We’re serious. It’s emotional for us. This may be my most favorite song I’ve written and recorded. I love what was said in this song. The first time I got the final mix, I listened to it 30 times in a row, couldn’t get enough of it. It tells where I’m from, and what I love.”
Talk about the title song Kill The Lights: “It’s another one that’s sexy, like I Don’t Want This Night To End, but the production is different, like a funky 70s bass line that makes it neat. Like Michael Jackson meets Ronnie Milsap.”
Did you set out to do something with a different feel? I don’t think you can ever do that, like if you set out to have the best fishing trip of your life, they may not be biting. When you get 6 or 7 songs picked, until you have half of it done can you look at the body of it, and see what you’re missing. When I hear a song that’s covered a subject I’ve already done, I’ll skip it.”
What other song do you want to talk about? “To The Moon & Back” is a song that when I heard it, this is my tribute to my wife. We use that phrase a lot. So when I heard it, someone else had the song on hold. They didn’t wind up recording it, and we lucked out, it turned out great, and I wasn’t ready to sing it 3 albums ago. Being five albums in, I’m starting to deliver songs I couldn’t sing before.”
Talk about the current single Kick The Dust Up: “This song is an anomaly, because I use some sounds you normally don’t hear in country. The first time I heard it, it sounded weird to me, almost Middle Eastern. I called one of the writers, and said ‘I ain’t gettin’ it.’ He goes, ‘Really? Listen to it again.’ So I did, and it got more comfortable. Then I’m singing it all day. Then Bo & Tate hear it. For four months, we get in the truck, and they want to hear that song. It’s a grow-on song, it grows on you. That’s what it does for me, and hopefully it does that for other people.”
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