Experiment

by Kane Brown

Overview

Kane Brown leaned into his millennial modernity on his 2016 debut, but the very title of its 2018 sequel suggests he is ready to probe the boundaries of what constitutes country at the twilight of the 2010s. Experiment dials down the overt modern R&B bent of Kane Brown without abandoning this aesthetic; similarly, he moves away from the candid confessionals of "Learning" but is still comfortable enough with his feelings to offer an explicit political protest song with "American Bad Dream." Such shifts are as tactical as Brown's decision to blend classic country forms with modern production while simultaneously accentuating a guttural growl that was unheard on his debut. This vocal affectation makes Brown sound more conventionally country but he deploys it cannily, whether it's on the randy "Short Skirt Weather" -- a spiritual sequel to Mel McDaniel's "Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On" -- or the opening "Baby Come Back to Me," which beats Jason Aldean at his slow-burning game. Brown isn't especially interested in being strictly country, though. These tracks help shore up support with the country base, but he also dabbles in arena country with echoes of U2 ("My Where I Come From") and amorphous borderless modern pop, which are mere accents to his concentration on soul. Brown embraces both old-school and modern R&B, sliding into a classic Southern groove on "Good as You" and gliding along to the slick surfaces of "Weekend," where he entices his lover to while away the days binge-watching '90s sitcoms. On these songs, Brown erases the lines between the past and the present, and this blurriness is the strength of Experiment: like the world he lives in, he repurposes old sounds and styles with his eye firmly on the future. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	11/09/2018
Label:	Rca
UPC:	0190758675329

Tracks

1. Baby Come Back to Me
2. Good as You
3. Lose It
4. It Ain't You, It's Me
5. Short Skirt Weather
6. Homesick
7. Weekend
8. Work
9. One Night Only
10. My Where I Come From
11. American Bad Dream
12. Live Forever

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Kane Brown   Primary Artist
Paul Franklin   Guitar (Steel)
Russell Terrell   Vocals (Background)
Russ Pahl   Guitar (Steel)
Jimmie Lee Sloas   Bass
Dann Huff   Banjo,Dobro,Piano,Sitar,Guitar,Soloist,Bouzouki,Keyboards,Guitar (Electric),Gut String Guitar
Aaron Sterling   Drums
Stuart Duncan   Fiddle
Derek Wells   Slide Guitar,Guitar (Electric)
Charles Dixon   Strings
Charlie Judge   Keyboards,Synthesizer
Ilya Toshinskiy   Banjo,Dobro,Bouzouki,Mandolin,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Resonator)
Ben Caver   Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Matt McGinn   Composer
Russell Terrell   Engineer
David Huff   Programming,Digital Editing
Corey Crowder   Composer,Programming
Justin Niebank   Mixing,Engineer
Dann Huff   Producer,Programming
Lowell Reynolds   Assistant
Josh Hoge   Composer
Adam Ayan   Mastering
Seth Morton   Engineer
Brock Berryhill   Composer,Programming
Mike "Frog" Griffith   Production Coordination
Sam Ellis   Composer,Programming
Shy Carter   Composer
Laura Veltz   Composer
Jon Green   Composer
Sam Ellison   Composer
Charlie Judge   Programming,String Arrangements
Polow da Don   Executive Producer
Joseph Llanes   Photography
Ben Caver   Engineer
Will Weatherly   Composer,Programming
Chris Small   Digital Editing
Tracy Fleaner   Creative Director
Chase McGill   Composer
Kane Brown   Composer
Taylor Phillips   Composer
Theresa Ferrin   Graphic Design