The name
Old Dominion
suggests something weathered, old, and sturdy -- a description that cannot be applied to either this Nashville quintet or their shiny bright 2015 debut,
Meat & Candy
.
is keenly aware of what constitutes contemporary country music in 2015, knowing that the pendulum is slowly swinging away from the swaggering confidence of bro country and toward a softer, sweeter pop that bears pronounced but understated hip-hop inflections. It's smooth, often romantic music, sometimes succumbing to a bit of country corn -- the band's breakthrough single "Break Up with Him" is a booty call disguised as a seduction -- but
wear their cheese with pride and not an insubstantial amount of charm, thanks partially to lead singer
Matthew Ramsey
's everyday charm but also to the band's impeccable craft. Every member of the quintet spent time working behind the scenes in the Music City, co-writing songs by the likes of
the Band Perry
and
Dierks Bentley
, so they're familiar with what pushes a song on the radio, and they also had the good fortune to align themselves with producer
Shane McAnally
, a collaborator with
Brandy Clark
and producer of
Kacey Musgraves
Sam Hunt
aligns closely with
Hunt
's
Montevallo
, particularly in its casual rap rhythms -- evident not only in the beats that underpin the productions but also in
Ramsey
's delivery -- but
lack the beefy assurance of
. Instead, this is a sharper, savvier variation of
Rascal Flatts
: crossover pop as suited for an office as it is for a make-out session. That's an endorsement, not a dismissal: it's hard to sound this light and easy, but
do it with aplomb and they're such talented craftsmen that
sounds better on the fifth play than it does on the first, and it sounds mighty fine that first time through. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine