Unfortunately for Old Dominion, Meat and Candy does not necessarily translate to a European audience quite as well as some of their contemporaries. It is not that Old Dominion are bad, per say, it is just that they are a tad too predictable and try hard to be fully enjoyable. Meat and Candy has some real moments of perfection, but they are surrounded by an album that is just too laddish in demeanour to have cross market appeal.
With an R&B flavoured approach to their country compositions, Old Dominion’s debut effort is certainly not short of saccharine earworms, which will certainly endear them to radio, but as with anything that is a little too sweet, it needs to be digested in small doses for fear that it upsets your digestive system.
Although we can guarantee that you will quite happily sing along to Snapback and Said Nobody, we can equally guarantee that they are unlikely to be deemed classics in a decade from today.
However, the witty Break Up With Him offers insight into an intelligent humour that should have been explored at greater length by the band. An enjoyable sing along anthem, that will shamelessly have you bouncing along to it. Equally enjoyable is the explosive chorus of Song For Another Time, which is no doubt destined to dominate the Radio 2 playlist some time very soon.
Meat and Candy may not be the strongest debut ever, but it has little hints that this could be a band to sit back and take note of. With a little nurture and greater attention to their lyrical content, Old Dominion may well blossom. As it stands, this is an enjoyable but forgettable effort.