Never let it be said that
Hunter Hayes resists big ideas.
Wild Blue, Pt. 1 is the first installment in a collection of three interlinked albums, all of which follow
The 21 Project, which itself spanned three connected EPs.
Hayes recorded much of
Wild Blue, Pt. 1 on his own at his Nashville home studio, but the ten-song LP doesn't feel hermetically sealed. Alternating between sweeping introspection, percolating self-affirmations, comforting heartbreak, and cheerful love songs, the album also spans a number of different sounds. Nominally country,
Wild Blue, Pt. 1 belongs to the pan-genre world of late 2010s streaming, where most of the rhythms are sequenced and simmer at a mid-tempo, while a digital sheen sands down the differences between pop, country, R&B, and rock. This doesn't sound eclectic as much as stylishly refined, touching upon all the sleek elements of modern mainstream culture.
Hayes is at his best when he gets a little lively -- "One Shot" is a charming digital hoedown, "Night and Day" gets a lot of mileage at hinting at classic R&B -- but there's an endearing earnestness to both his singing and his songs, and that sincerity gives
Wild Blue, Pt. 1 personality even when the production is at its slickest. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine