CD REVIEW: Matt Morris "When Everything Breaks Open"

It's always good to have friends in high places. For Matt Morris, his friend is none other than Justin Timberlake. Yes, that Justin Timberlake. Morris is the first artist signed to Timberlake's Tennman Records, an independent label he started to release some otherwise unknown musicians. That being said, Morris will reap the success of this album for years to come as it is an incredibly fine debut. He mixes his soulful singing with a pop friendly folk style that is not very mass produced in the record industry these days. "Money," the first single off of this album, is a soul filled tune about the dangers of greed, and one of Morris' best. He channels everyone from Coldplay to Stevie Wonder on this album, which features production and guest appearances (including instrumentally) from Timberlake himself. Edie Brickell and Patty Griffin also appear on the album with background vocals, showing off his incredible connection to folk music and the Nashville scene. Other standout tracks include "Bloodline" and "The Un-American" which is a track portraying the so called "die hard Americans" in this country as being not very American at all. Morris is sure to gain tons of praise for this album due to his connections to Timberlake, however, it wouldn't have been long before, without his connections, Matt Morris would have amazed the world with his music.