Cole Swindell Down Home Sessions II Digital Album

Cole Swindell is worth the whiskey!

*I already wrote this review on Amazon so I'm reposting it here. The!

Cole Swindell to me was just a regular olé country singer I would hear on the radio station every now and then but his video on Facebook and YouTube lent me interest on checking out his new upcoming EP "Down Home Sessions 2" and boy I'm glad I did.

First off, you might be thinking I'm some white, redneck (no insults intended) who spends my nights at country clubs, dancing, drinking and making barbecues on weekend afternoons and attending rodeos...but believe it or not, I'm actually Asian. Yes I'm an Asian who loves country music! I was practically brought up into this world by The Eagles and Shania Twain songs throughout my preschool years ^^ but enough about me.

I'd describe this EP as being typical country sounding which is not a bad thing. It's just what you would come to expect and that's what we're here for anyways with those guitar riffs that makes it seem like you've been transported to grassy hills in the late afternoon. That kind of feeling. Or just driving home from a long day's work. Each song is unique in a way that its order seems just right. Mr. Swindell really went the route of putting his song order into a story rather than just write a bunch of random songs and throw it together as an album and this batch of songs really weaves them together nice and hot like the barbacued side of a corncob.

1. Dangerous after Dark: A fast rockin song which is a great opener constantly repeating that a girl he's met is probably "dangerous after dark" hence the song's title. I liked this song the moment it started playing! I can definitely see this song hitting the country airwaves. 9/10

2. My first Radio: Here we're treated to a slow rock song that we probably won't hear again on this EP until track 5. This has to be my favorite track because of the way the melody flows accompanied by Cole's nostalgic sounding vocals and words. Definitely a track highlight and makes one recall the past. 10/10

3. Should've ran after you: Lately we've been listening to a lot of Bro Country songs and this song certainly sounds like one of em, mentioning a drink in his first sentence, taking place in a bar and drinking away the pain. But Cole gives his own mixture into this song that makes it strictly his, feeling deep regret of not chasing after the girl which we can all relate to and no surprise, he nails it. 8/10

4. Shuttin' it Down: For those of you familiar with Sam Hunt's "Take your time" song you'll find this song eerily similar the first second it rolls through your ears as Cole speaks rather than sings over another upbeat sounding song, only for you to have a strange sense of deja vu wondering if Semisonic's "Closing time" is playing instead? Nope. It's just another song about "You don't got to go home but you can't stay here" but with a mix of country. Just listen to the lyrics. And whoever said that's a bad thing? The little bit at the end was a nice bonus too. 9/10

5. Blue Lights: A nice laid back song to close the EP which seems like a continuation of the previous song "Shuttin' it Down" as nothing seems to be left of the bar or the lady friend but the "Blue Lights" that Cole has become. And again we can relate to feeling nothing once the night ends, hung from the lingering traces of what was once a rockin, jammin atmosphere. It's left you wanting more like a hidden 6th track. 9/10

Again I was looking forward to Down Home Sessions 2 and overall I'm satisfied. Cole Swindell is definitely one of the Bro Country singers who's made himself recognized up there with previous hits like "See ya girl" and "Ain't worth the whiskey" comparable to Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Easton Corbin, Zac Brown Band, Blake Shelton, Chris Young, Dierks Bentley...and heck it, all of em! Hopefully they make a physical release of this EP because I just like owning hard copies of media if I really enjoyed it. I may or may not have listened to all these tracks five days before the EP's offical 13 November release date and I may or may not have just written this review a little tipsy. Well I'm Asian after all. It only takes a few to get me like this. ^^ Purchase and download this EP if you love country or if you're just looking for a little after playlist coming home from a good day's work (or crummy). I will definitely be keeping my eyes out for more releases from Cole Swindell