David Cook
This Loud Morning
(RCA Records)

Random.

That’s what David Cook is—absolutely random. Not so much in his music—on that front he’s very mainstream, very commercial…he’s a pop star.

No, Cook’s random in the way that he’s consistently good, once again delivering a solid album filled with heartbreak, motivation, frustration, and lots and lots of power chords.

This Loud Morning has a much more artsy feel than his last eponymously named album, which makes sense, seeing as how his first release arrived on the curtails of his American Idol win, and was targeted for a very select audience—the same people who watched the show.  After successfully catering to them, Cook is now allowing us to see a more mature, artistic side to him than what we’re used to.

Cook has grown as an artist since his sudden launch into stardom. His lyrics are much more profound than his earlier stuff (“We were almost beautiful/A broken piece of art put on display” on “The Last Goodbye”), and in each song, he really delves into his personality, giving us more raw emotion, evident in the grit with which he sings.

The album’s only single so far is “The Last Goodbye,” –a heartbreaking dedication to the one who got away. When Cook sings “I didn’t wanna lose you/Leave you with a broken heart,” he sings it with conviction. Musically, the verses are pretty bland, but the chorus has that I-need-to-belt-this-at-the-top-of-my-lungs kind of feel to it, which makes it successful.

Arguably, the best track on the album is Cook’s opening experimental number, “Circadian.” Cook has stated that the song is about falling asleep and using sleep as a reprieve from the day. I don’t really get that, but it’s still an excellent piece of rock material, much like the album itself.