It’s always an exciting moment when new music is released. I have been lucky and have been able to enjoy that moment from the perspective of an outlet doing the release as well as the countless times a favourite artist has released new music. For Brett Kissel fans today is like a second Christmas as his anticipated fourth album, Now Or Never, finally arrives so I’ll call it Kisselmas.
My personal journey with Brett Kissel started about 6 years ago, just weeks before his debut label album, Started With A Song, would be released. In the 6 years since I’ve watch Brett grow up considerably both as a person and as a musician. Brett’s ability to relate to his audience is what really makes him stand out as an artist. When you listen to a Brett Kissel album the songs are all about experiences you’ve lived yourself.
Where We Were That Song was more autobiographical Now Or Never is filled with “A Few Good Stories”. These stories get tied together and the end result is an album that’s not just fun it’s familiar both in sound and feeling. “That’s Country Music” is the track that perfectly describes the entire album.
Track 1 – “Drink About Me” – 7 million streams have earned Brett a #4 spot on the charts and it’s still climbing. “When you hear this song, I hope you’ll reminisce about your best days. Happiest times. First kiss. Longest kiss. Warmest embrace. Let this song surround you. And let these memories come flooding back,” says Brett. “As a firm believer in ‘the power of positivity,’ I want to put out into that same universe that this song will bring back some of the greatest memories you’ve ever had.”
I guarantee you each of you can relate to this song. Those moments of deja vu that bring back memories and wondering if that special person in those memories “thinks” about you too. I dare you not to sing along to this one when Brett’s performing it live or you hear it on the radio!
Track 2 – “A Few Good Stories” – As I mentioned earlier this could easily be the intro track for the entire album. Unlike We Were That Song, on which all of the songs could be tied together to tell a story, Now Or Never is made up of 8 short stories.
“A Few Good Stories” is a catchy upbeat song that will get your toes tapping song that could easily reflect most of our New Year’s resolutions. It’s a song about living life, having fun and ensuring that in the end you have a few good stories to tell. “When it’s all said and done, I’ll know I lived it well if I ain’t got nothing but a few good stories to tell.”
Track 3 – “That’s Country Music“ – Definitely one of my favourite tracks on this album. It’s the song that ties all of the 7 other songs together. It’s a song about life, love, heartache, joy…it’s a song about country music.
Luke Bryan had a hit single called “What Makes You Country?” well the answer is everything in this song. “It’s a pair of worn out cowboy boots, it’s a don’t forget your hometown roots, it’s a granddad saying I had a good life, it’s a fold in the flag as you say goodbye.” “It hits the heart and soul and just feels right, it pulls us through it. It’s the ups and the downs the soundtrack of our lives.”
This is the first song on the album co-written by Brett himself along with Karen Kosowski and Phil Barton.
Track 4 – “Young Enough” – if you can’t relate to this song you’re not old enough yet. In our youth we can’t wait to be old enough to drive, drink, vote, or do whatever things that have an age limit to them.
This is a rockin’ track that will certainly play out really well on stage but the moral of the story is rather than wait until you’re old enough to do something why not take advantage of time and do stuff while you’re still “Young Enough” to do so.
I’ll turn 46 this year and even though I still like to do the spontaneous stuff it gets harder and harder the older you get. If you don’t take advantage of your time in your youth you won’t have the stories to tell when you’re older.
Track 5 – “She Drives Me Crazy“ – this song has an extremely familiar sound to it. It’s a new poppier sound for Brett Kissel. It’s self described as “Anthem” on steroids and I think that’s a fair assessment.
This genre crossing track could do well on Top 40 radio which is not unfamiliar territory for country artists these days.
Written by Brett Kissel, Emma-Lee, and Karen Kosowski this is a fun song about a woman who you just can’t get out of your head. We’ve all had that person in our lives where everything you do, or see, reminds you of them 24/7 this song is about them!
Track 6 – “Hummingbird” – a true country song, again, written by Brett Kissel, Emma-Lee, and Karen Kosowski.
I’ve listened to this song about a dozen times now and my take on this one is a metaphorical one. The Hummingbird represents a person that comes into your life for a short, but special, time. They fly in one day and fly out the next. “You can’t hold a hummingbird, somethings just aren’t meant to be and summer winds set her free”. The hummingbird is the one that got away.
This song ranks up there for me with Garth Brooks’ “The Dance”. “And now I’m glad I didn’t know The way it all would end the way it all would go Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain But I’d of had to miss the dance”
Track 7- “I’m Not Him, I’m Not Her” – written by Brett Kissel and performed with Christina Taylor this song is another one of my favourites on this album.
If you’ve ever been hurt in a relationship you know how hard it is to open up and get out there again and then how hard it is to let another person close to you.
This is a song about that moment of realization that the new person sitting in front of you is not the one who hurt you in the past.
Brett joined Christina for her song “As Good As You Look” in the fall and her voice is the perfect match for this song. Listen to it and I’m sure it’ll become one of your favourites too.
Track 8 – “Coffee with Her” – if you know Brett Kissel you know that he’s a HUGE Johnny Cash fan (check our YouTube page for a tribute he did to Johnny the first time we saw him live).
Johnny Cash was once asked to describe paradise…his answer “This morning, with her, having coffee.”
This is the same kind of love that Brett and Cecilia share. Brett and Cecilia are this generations Johnny and June hands down, no one else comes close.
That’s it, 8 songs, 26 minutes of Brett Kissel goodness.
I don’t write a lot of music reviews, simply because I listen to SO much music each week and get so much sent to me there just isn’t time to write a review for each album. But Brett is different. Brett is that friend that creates something and genuinely cares what his friends think about it. In all honesty Brett makes it easy. He’s given us a glimpse into his life, let us share in his love for Cecilia and the kids and then delivered album after album of perfectly relatable songs.
Doesn’t get much better than that. Merry Kisselmas everyone and best wishes from myself and everyone at Sound Check Entertainment for an amazing year ahead!
To celebrate the new album we created a Brett Kissel – Greatest Hits playlist on Spotify stream it, and the album, below. If you’re looking to buy the album (you should) you can get it on iTunes here.
