The Problem With... Lady Antebellum's "Just A Kiss"
Bless my lucky stars! Lady Antebellum is back on the charts!
In the fall, they'll be releasing an album with the ominous title, Own The Night, which makes them sound like they're vampires or a street gang wearing 19th century dresses with huge skirts.
I do declare: They must have watched Vampire Diaries when they thought up the name.
Actually, I have a more realistic theory about Lady Antebellum.
I truly believe that they're just a Tennesseean rehash of New Braunfels' Own late-'90s, light rock trio, Sixpence None the Richer. Listeners might remember that band's 1998 song "Kiss Me," which became the flowery anthem to teenage romance after it appeared on WB (pre-CW!) teen dramas, the film She's All That, and, later, in parody form, in Not Another Teen Movie.
Really. Listen to Lady Antebellum's latest track, "Just A Kiss." It follows in the young, chaste relationship theme that "Kiss Me" highlighted, starting off with a piano chord and climbing to a grandiose orchestral piece -- sorta like Aerosmith's "Don't Wanna Miss a Thing."
Lyrically, "Just A Kiss" is pretty literal and bland. The only figurative lines are "the fire burning so bright" (spoiler alert: the fire represents sexual tension) and the "just a shot in the dark" bit in the chorus.
On the whole, this song seems kinda old-fashioned amongst all the outspoken and steamy acts in the Top 40. I guess, with a name like Lady Antebellum, we should expect that. Maybe the music industry's just covering their bases by serving the demographic that appreciates sugar-coated love ballads over brash statements like "Tonight, I'm fuckin' you!"
If not, well, then "Just A Kiss" will probably appear in sappy, modest teenage romantic comedies. If those types of movies still exist.
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