Austin is a very fitting name for this very open and mature effort from the legend himself post-Malone. He is really looking to break out of his known brand of hard-hitting party styles and embrace a more toned-down version of himself. And for the most part, it’s not that bad. He experiments a lot here with various styles of music from 80s style styh pop, country, acoustic ballets, and gospel heavy tracks. Something in the post has given him a new purpose in his new release. He is looking more inward on himself and wants us to take that journey with him as he tries to lay himself bare to all of us. He is trying to show more variety in his vocals from different pitches and vocal registers. A lot of the choices in this direction are pretty good. Sometimes they do come off a bit bland but still decent songs. He took a chance on himself with this album, and I think the fans and himself will be very pleased with the outcome of the album.
RATING: 7.5/10
NOTIABLE TRACKS:
Something Real
Overdrive
Speedometer
Laugh It Off