Dan + Shay – Bigger Houses | 365 Days Of Inspiring Media

Warner Music Nashville

Release Date: September 15th 2023

Reviewed by: Joshua Andre

Dan + Shay– Bigger Houses (Amazon mp3/iTunes)

Track Listing:

Breakin’ Up With A Broken Heart
Save Me The Trouble
Heartbreak On The Map
Always Gonna Be
For The Both Of Us
Then Again
Heaven + Back
What Took You So Long
Missing Someone
We Should Get Married
Neon Cowgirl
Bigger Houses

In times of trouble and in times of suffering, where do we go when we need uplifting? Of course, we can turn to the Bible and to Jesus- the Author and Perfector of our faith; but there are other avenues of finding encouragement and inspiration for those of us who aren’t religious, or for those of us who would like to be inspired in other ways other than the Word. Perhaps we watch a moving and gripping TV show, an emotional movie, or an engaging interview on YouTube. Maybe we sit and talk openly and candidly with our parents or friends or maybe we jam out to that one particular song that’s been on the radio forever that makes us feel good. But in my own opinion, I personally think that there’s nothing better than spinning through an album chock full of positivity and optimism, and general cheeriness and joyfulness.

An album doesn’t have to be deep all the time (if every music album was musically, thematically, and lyrically like albums from John Mayer, Andrew Peterson, or Jason Gray, then wouldn’t the world be depressing, gloomy, cynical and jaded, don’t you think?), and as long as there is something meaningful and worthwhile to be gaining out of the experience of listening to an album, and as long as the album doesn’t encourage you to be all moody and reflective for no reason at all; then I’d say any album that brings a smile to your face is a good album. And with that, let us speak about country duo Dan + Shay and their latest album Bigger Houses, which released in September this year.

For this site, we’ve reviewed plenty of country albums in the past. Though there’s something about Dan and Shay’s most recent project that is so easy to listen to, in a good way. Not that it’s better than albums from Alana Springsteen, Ashley Cooke, King Calaway, Brett Young, Dennis Quaid, Ward Thomas, Lauren Alaina, Carrie Underwood, Anne Wilson, Caitlyn Shadbolt, or even Thomas Rhett’s greatest hits album; but Bigger Houses is indeed something different, and that’s always something to champion. Yet some would say that both Dan and Shay are too pop and not ‘country enough’ to be considered a country artist. However even though they are walking the line between pop and country, their lyrics are still earnest, emotive, personal, and honest. Their music still tugs at our souls in different way to the rousing, declaratory and anthemic country albums… so does it matter what they sound like genre-wise in the grand scheme of things? And one listen from this breezy, bubbly, and laid-back project, will undoubtedly persuade you all to agree with me- that these guys are something special and their album is one that does bring a smile to our faces!

I previously rated Good Things from 2021 a 3.5/5, with the assertion that ‘…all of the songs melodically and musically sound the same, and most are under 3 minutes. There are no upbeat rock-type songs, and there’s a sense of sameness here that makes the album seem ‘fine’ and meander along…the album would’ve been much more impacting and moving had the guys taken more risks. As it stands, Good Things is just there. Though these songs still tug at our souls, I’m sure a couple more upbeat tunes would’ve brightened up a track list that seems stale and stuck in the 90’s. Though that’s not a bad thing, because Good Things is inspiring, no doubt about it. But it could’ve been so much more…’. With that being said, Bigger Houses is a step up melodically. But it’s still Dan and Shay in their boyfriend-country wheelhouse, and by and large this album is solid but no means perfect. It’s a step up from the mediocre Good Things but let’s just say that it’s slightly more than mediocre. Album opener “Breakin’ Up With A Broken Heart” is a moving and emotional country/pop ballad which speaks about the persona trying to break up with their own broken heart so that they can ‘get over’ an ex quicker and move on to everyday life. it’s a situation and a song that we all can probably identify with, and with Dan and Shay reiterating that they’re going to ‘send their tears into a taxi’ and ‘leave all their lonely in the dark’, and other nice platitudes and imagery that is supposed to make us feel warm and fuzzy inside. And sure, with Dan and Shay we’re not really supposed to question the way the lyrics seem… but these lyrics are indeed quite vague and remind us of lazy writing; even though the theme of the song itself, which is quite relatable and relevant, is still noble and appreciated.

The rest of the album, though objectively quite skilful, creative, and ingenious musically, is lyrically quite frustrating, as there are moments of brilliance, moments of laziness and moments of general awkwardness and creepiness. “Save Me The Trouble”, the lead single and also one of the many pre-order singles, is a ‘warning’ type of melody, with the persona in the song singing to a potential partner, letting her know that if she’s not in it for the long haul, that if she’s going to break his heart later on down the track, then she should just save them both the trouble and just move along and not even try to strike up a conversation. This song is a bleak outlook on life, and though this melody does have its place in the sense that it needs to be listened to in order to really know if the person you’re dating is the one you really want to spend the rest of your life with; such a weighty and meaty melody lyrically doesn’t really seem so with the upbeat melody and the frivolous nature of the instruments- which does the lyrics here a great disservice, with possibly many people not even really listening to the lyrics, and thinking that it’s just a great pop/country song, when it’s so much more than that. Similarly with another pre-order single “Heartbreak On The Map”, the duo turn a melancholy and reflective ballad into something that seems to be a whole lot more positive and optimistic (of which the subject matter isn’t optimistic nor positive), with the lyrics being about reiterating how the person who broke the persona’s heart could be in Texas or Colorado or Tennessee, and that she redefined what heartbreak really means and she really did a number on him; while “Always Gonna Be” is a whole lot more happy and joyful and cheerful, with the sunny acoustic type guitar led song being about the constants in life and about how some things are always going to be there in life, which is a good thing indeed, as Shay fervently cries out that ‘…beer drinkin’ kids on a backroad, good country songs on the radio, tailgates fallin’ down on a Friday, long goodbye kisses in the driveway, long as the sun keeps comin’ up, long as the Mississippi River runs, baby, just like you and me, some things are always gonna be…’.

Probably the most vulnerable and emotional melody on Bigger Houses is the piano ballad “For The Both Of Us”. In the song, the persona sings to his fiancé’s father, telling him that ‘…I’m in love with your daughter, and I’ve been since the first time I saw her, I’ll ask her the question if you give your blessin’, when she takes my hand, you can trust I’ll love her enough for the both of us…’, and the melody is extremely relatable considering some of us are married and others are longing to be married to the right person and are just waiting for the right time to ask the question or gain the approval of the in-laws; while the topic of regrets and what-if’s is explored in the contemplative ballad “Then Again”. The song features a very mature Dan and Shay, as they both wrestle with the question of free will and whether they’d do things differently if God put them in charge of their own lives. It’s a melody to ponder, about whether to trust the God of the universe in everything we do or to wrestle control and do things our way (and every consequence that comes along with that!); while the poppy melody “Heaven + Back” speaks about the persona loving their girlfriend or spouse (in a physical sense?) and is a song that champions a special kind of pure love. “What Took You So Long”, a reflective and lamenting type of melody where Shay asks his wife where has she been all his life (saying that he loves her in a roundabout way), is a track that honours the kind of love they both share together; while “Missing Someone” is thematically quite different, and speaks about an ex who wants to fall back into bad habits, but is really just missing the safety of the relationship rather than the love of the other person.

When it comes to what I prefer, breakup songs or love songs… the beauty of writing songs is you’re able to write about what you know. We both went through heartbreak and we both right now are experiencing incredible marriages in our lives. In my growing up, even when I was in a great relationship, my favorite songs were breakup songs. Because it makes you feel something. And I feel like that’s a little bit of a therapy in a way to kind of air that stuff out, even if you’re not going through it at the time. It’s an important part of the process to kind of grieve that, and sometimes the song can just take you right back to that place and bring you healing, if it’s a sad song, even when you’re in a happy place. “Tequila,” a sad breakup song, was one of our biggest songs, even with people that were in love at the time.

I think a good album always covers all the bases. You have your wedding songs, you have your love songs, you have your breakup songs. I think it’s important to touch on all those things and have a little something for everybody and, even if you relate to a love song, there’s probably a breakup song on there that hits you in the feels and takes you back to that place that you were in that maybe brings a little bit of healing.

We’ve all heard creepy love songs which border on somewhat sweet but they’re actually not. “Hello” by Lionel Richie. “Marry Me” by Train. “Every Breath You Take” by The Police. “End Of the Road” by Boyz II Men. Now let’s add in “We Should Get Married” by Dan + Shay. Props and kudos to them though for doing a tempo change in this ballad turned traditional country song with fiddles turned back into a ballad. But one dissection of the lyrics gives me ‘icky vibes’, as the persona wants to marry someone… that he just met. Ludicrous and crazy, don’t you think? I know, it’s a Dan and Shay song and we shouldn’t question it. Maybe it’s satire. Never mind that it’s catchy and one of their best musically. I just can’t get past the lyrics. Maybe you can’t either. What were they thinking? Dunno. Maybe a nonsensical melody? Regardless, this track paves the way for the inspirational track “Neon Cowgirl”, where the duo provide encouragement and a listening ear to a girl who is crying and needs someone to listen to her and to be with her as she vents about someone who did her wrong. The final melody on Bigger Houses is the title track, and is Dan & Shay at their best, as they impart wisdom to us that a bigger house doesn’t mean a better life, and that ‘…there’s always gonna be a higher high you could chase for the rest of your life, greener grass in the yard next door or a shined-up Chevy little newer than yours, you’re never gonna fill an empty cup if what you got’s still not enough, the thing about happiness I’ve found is it don’t live in bigger houses…’.

Lyric-wise Bigger Houses is a reinvention of Dan & Shay. They’re singing about the more important things in life and for that, I can’t be more pleased at this effort. There’s this sense of moving forward on this album and it seems that this project actually had them actively trying to switch things up. Unfortunately though, the run time of each track is too similar and save for a few tracks that a musically unique (“We Should Get Married”, “Save Me The Trouble”, “Bigger Houses”), the rest of the melodies musically blur together, even though they’re lyrically quite strong. And this is why Dan and Shay frustrate me. This album is fantastic in one aspect, mediocre in another. And here we are. Bigger Houses isn’t perfect. There’s still work to be done. But this album is a step in the right direction. That’s all you can really ask for though. Well done Dan and Shay for shining a light on a number of relevant and relatable topics, how about a full-length Christmas album next?

Dan and I were both a little bit burnt out on music. We weren’t communicating. We were not really hanging out outside of work. Any time we got together, it was to do an interview or a show. And, I mean, we’re best friends. We started this thing 10 years ago and we were not nurturing the thing that really mattered the most: our relationship with each other. A lot of, duos, especially, fall to the wayside because of that. It’s a very difficult configuration. With a trio, you’ve got the tiebreaker; as a solo act, you’re making all the decisions. But with a duo, it’s 50/50, and you have to make sure that you’re in lockstep and you’re communicating. And we got to this place where we were going in different directions.

Opposites attract in a lot of ways, in every kind of dynamic. You look at any marriage. I’m very different in the way that I approach my life than my wife is, and I know Dan’s the same, from Abby, and that’s a beautiful thing. When you’re able to work together with someone that is very different than you, it’s a great picture of what humanity looks like, and it’s very reflective of really what our society is like, when done in a healthy way. I think the reason that there’s been so many duos break up is because sometimes when you have a bigger group, that pressure can kind of be dispersed in a way, and things can kind of be resolved through another party. With a duo, if one person has a problem and they’re not real willing to work through that, there’s no one else to lean on or reason with that person. So it really has to be you two getting on the same page.

We had a night that we got together and aired all of our stuff out and really communicated and apologized for a lot of things on both sides. And we got to this place where we said, “Let’s either ride out into the sunset as friends and call it a day, or let’s really figure out our stuff and figure out a healthy way to move forward.” We had a plan of action to just hang out three times a week, and just get together with no intention rather than just hanging out. And us hanging out just turned into us ending up writing songs together. We had no pressure to make an album or anything. We just got together and simply were talking and writing songs with our friends. The very first song that we wrote for this project was a song called “Always Gonna Be.” And that title came from that night Dan and I got together, and we said: No matter what happens with the future of our band, you can never take away what’s happened with Dan + Shay. We’re always going to be a tattoo on someone’s arm or a first dance song. And that was really important for us to get to that place and be appreciative of where we’ve been, and really have no pressure about what the future looks like. This album really came from that: just two guys that were loving music again and having a good time with it and just writing songs on an acoustic guitar again. With this project, there were not a lot of the pressures that there normally are when you have three or four months to turn in an album for your record label. This was just a very authentic, genuine look into where we’re at in our lives right now, and that’s what makes this one so special.

The last 10 years of our career has been pretty squeaky-clean. I know a lot of people do that on social media. You only post the best of the best on your highlight reel. And we were back and forth about being that vulnerable. We had never done anything like that. And we truly do love what we do. We’re so grateful for everything that’s been given to us and everything that we’ve accomplished together. But we were going through this in such a big way, maybe that made it harder for us to not be able to share it and, I guess selfishly, be able to get it out there to the world.

We also thought about it as, if we’re going through this situation, this kind of communication block, if we’re going through this and what that’s doing to us, we felt like maybe it could help somebody else through what they’re going through, whether it’s a significant other, whether it’s a best friend, whether it’s a coworker. It’s just about opening up, being vulnerable, communicating with somebody, asking for help, telling someone you’re not OK. That’s where it starts. And you can’t heal until you do that. So we just wanted to kind of tell our story.