Tomorrow's Sounds Today

Even though there's little stylistic maturation in his approach since his first release in 1986, Yoakam's songwriting craft keeps improving, and any track from this album could be a hit single. With Tomorrow's Sounds Today, Dwight Yoakam has fashioned a contemporary roots-conscious country album whose qualities, like the artist's distinctive style, are timeless.

"Sounds" sounds great, alternating between driving, percussive romps like "Love Caught Up To Me," "Free To Go," and "Dreams Of Clay" and moments of sheer country perfection in "Time Spent Missing You," "A Promise You Can't Keep," and the wonderfully hangdog Hank Williams knockoff "The Heartaches Are Free."

Tomorrow's Sounds Today lacks the focused punch of Yoakam's best album, 1995's lean-and-mean Gone, but it's at least as consistent as his recent Nineties greatest-hits set -- right down to the nifty honky-tonk rock & roll cover, "I Want You to Want Me."

Tomorrow's Sounds Today belies its promising title by breaking no new ground, and, in fact, retracing some pretty well-known boot-scootin' steps.... If nothing else, it's still a pleasure to hear on Tomorrow's Sounds Today what producer and guitarist extraordinaire Pete Anderson can do with material that is only average.

Tomorrow's Sounds Today returns to a more conventional approach, with 14 full-band songs replete with strings, slides, and electric guitars. As is frequently the case, however, more is less, with Yoakam settling for modestly ambling charmers in lieu of transcendent moments.