Jake Owen's new single "Days of Gold" is... different?

Just the other day I was thinking it's been about two years since Jake Owen released his last album (not counting last year's stellar EP "Summer Jam") and we were about due for some new music.

Sure enough, Jake's latest single "Days of Gold" was released to the Internet on Tuesday. Give it a listen here:



Now before "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" I was kind of on the fence about Jake. I had liked some of his previous singles ("Yee Haw," "Somethin' 'Bout A Woman," "Don't Think I Can't Love You") but hadn't been too high on his first two albums. "Barefoot Blue Jean Night" (the single and album) changed my opinion, especially the title track and his latest hit "Anywhere With You." I also caught him live in concert a couple times over the past two years and he is absolutely one of my top five favorite live acts in country music right now.

Now, about "Days of Gold." It's different, that's for sure. I'm not one to be opposed to a good up-tempo jam, but I don't think this is it. Instrumentally it's fine, although I'm not a huge fan of the percussion throughout. However, I'm not a big fan of how Jake sings it and nothing really stands out lyrically. It's not nearly as catchy as his recent singles.

"Days of Gold" feels like a runaway train and I'm not really sure where it's going.