Leave the Light On in Bloomington, MN

Crawling forth at the speed of a tortoise,
Leave the Light On
is a soundtrack for broken hearts and late nights, a mini-LP that places a heavy emphasis on feel. This vibe isn't limited to the sleek production, deliberate tempos, and minor keys, it extends to
Bailey Zimmerman
's vocals themselves. A cross between the dour
Jason Aldean
and earnest gravel of
Luke Combs
,
Zimmerman
has a raspy voice that doesn't suggest sandpaper so much as distressed jeans: it's carefully crafted to suggest authenticity. Initially, the blend of brooding music and strained singing seems intriguing but as the tracks pile up, it's hard to ignore the affectation in the songs, especially in
's singing. He sounds best when he's adorned -- "From the Fall" has slight echoes of sighing '70s soft rock, offering an appealing bit of sweetening -- but when it's just him and his muscled guitars, as it is on the concluding "Where It Ends," he just sounds like a Southern-fried
Chad Kroeger
. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine