Gavin DeGraw’s ‘Sweeter’ Album Review

Gavin DeGraw’s 4th album ‘Sweeter’ has been released today. If you’re a huge fan like me, you will notice a slight change in his music. This change isn’t bad at all. I think it’s just growth as an artist. His new single “Not Over You” caught my ear because it sounded different compared to his normal style of music. I’m not saying I didn’t like it, I’m just saying it was different. But as I heard it for a second time I just fell in love with it. When I saw him perform at the New York State Fair back in August, DeGraw introduced this song by saying he co-wrote it with Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. That’s when I said to myself that it explains the different sound.

You can hear in his songs the honesty and reality of what he’s talking about. He could be talking about a break up, a new relationship, or life in general and you can relate to it. A good example would be his upbeat song “Candy” which talks about looking for more in life then what’s right in front of you. My favorite song on the entire album is “Soldier”. The chorus states “You’re thirsty I’ll be your rain/ You get hurt I’ll take your pain…When you get worried I’ll be your soldier”. It really speaks about a deep love for that special someone and always being there for that one person.  DeGraw talks about helping the person you love no matter what and always being strong for them. DeGraw’s “Radiation” is a fun song to listen to. It talks about a bad relationship that you just can’t get out of.  The back and forth that couples do even though they know the relationship just isn’t working. I’m pretty sure a lot of people can relate to this song; whether they want to admit to it or not is another question.

If you’re a Gavin DeGraw fan you will love the album. If you’re not or haven’t really heard much of his music, give it a listen, I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how good he is. I think everyone could relate to at least one of his songs on this album. He will be promoting 'Sweeter' on his upcoming tour with David Cook in October. After hearing the entire album I just wish he was coming back to Central New York to see him perform it live!