As I listened to Kris Allen's debut CD, a nagging thought wouldn't get out of my head: I've heard this before. You'll think the same thing as you listen to Kris's CD. But just because the songs aren't that innovative, it doesn't mean that some of them aren't good. The album is definitely a respectable effort from Kris, especially regarding the rush job recording sessions necessary to get the album done. Read on for the specifics.

On American Idol, Kris suffered from being slightly forgettable, and some of the tracks on his debut album don't really help that mentality. The fact that almost every song has a cliche title doesn't help. Like Daughtry's debut album, you can easily compare just about every song to a band that's already out there. "Bring It Back" sounds like The Fray. "Can't Stay Away" sounds like Maroon 5. "Alright With Me" sounds like an iTunes commercial. I’m sure if you played “Bring It Back” for a fan of the The Fray, they’d like it. So it’s not necessarily a bad tactic to push the record. Throwing a bunch of songs at the wall to see what sticks is standard Idol protocol, so you can't fault Kris too much for the experimentation, especially since his vocals blend in nicely with most of the variety.

The best track on the album is "Before We Come Undone", a catchy slice of pop that is radio ready. His voice sounds great and the song can appeal to the Adult Contemporary crowd that buys Idol albums. "Is It Over" is another standout, where Kris hits his stride with a bluesy ballad, showing the type of slow songs he should be singing. The album needs more moments like these though.

On the other side of the coin, Kris's vocals can become grating on songs like "The Truth", where he verges on whiny during the chorus. The inclusion of the few songs that have some light wordplay like "Live Like We're Dying" and "Written All Over My Face" were clearly to appeal to the younger crowd, but they seem slightly forced. Kris isn't uncool, but some of his co-songwriters make him sound that way. "Heartless" isn't nearly as fun as it was on Idol's stage, for instance. But even when the album fails in certain spots, it won’t irritate you. In fact, the songs grew on me with repeated listens.

Overall, most of the songs are decent, with a few real standouts that deserve your attention. And knowing how the Idol machine cranks these albums out so quickly, a decent album with a few standout tracks is something you should look into. The appeal of the album is that Kris isn’t trying too hard. He’s merely putting his spin on some pleasant music without any pretense about trying to reinvent the wheel. Because reinventing the wheel he’s not. But try to enjoy the music for what it is: a decent copy of other music that's already out there. If Kris makes it to album number two, maybe we'll see more of who he is.

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