JACKSON DEAN - Train - Big Machine Records

As Jackson Dean’s incredible live dynamic continues to earn solid accolades while consistently impressing his diehards and stunning newcomers to an absolute silence, his extremely gifted ability to transfer the raw energy of his shows into the feel of his most current studio recordings is lifting his unbridled authenticity to even greater heights.

Following the release of “Big Blue Sky,” the rising talent now continues previewing his next chapter with his latest effort, “Train.”

Initially released in live format this past fall as part of his Apple Music Nashville Sessions, co-written by Dean, Brandon Aksteter, Rich Kolm,  Sean Mercer, and Luke Dick, the fan-favorite anchors his setlist when it kicks off the middle 6 songs of his show, becoming a cornerstone moment with its innovative storytelling and foundational throwback essence.

With a moodiness built into the progression of his natural Southern rock edge, the instrumentation grips the waver of his heartbroken rasp as Dean wanders aimlessly between the steel rails of the train tracks, walking his emptiness comparatively in line with the lonely feelings welled up inside of his fractured heart.

Confessing through a lens of perspective maturity on how he’s been left, used, and stepped on in his previous relationships, masterfully sets up the heartstring tug when he then painfully emphasizes at the end line of each of the three verses that none of those past hurts has affected him quite like her cold goodbye.

“He had a heart like Santa Fe® line headed west,” “It felt so warm inside your graffiti dress,” etc. craftily paints real life emotions with visually stunning train references, as much like a vagabond who has lost his direction, Dean navigates a weariness while trying to reach an understanding to numb the pain.

An artistic simplicity in the chorus, chugging a series of “oooh’s” like the clickety-clack of the wheels striking the rail joints as it passes over them, becomes a symbolic piece to the overall picture as he never finds comforting solace, similarly to that like a train which continually moves to the next destination while never finding a place to rest.

Deeply profound and poetically powerful, Jackson Dean showcases his craftsmanship at a very high standard with “Train,” taking the universal feeling of heartbreak and finding a unique way to write about it so that it’s freshly different and uber thought-provoking.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis/Artwork c/o Big Machine Records)

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