Blake Smeltz's latest single, "Nicotine Daydream," the up-and-coming country-rock raconteur takes his audiences by the collar and pulls them headlong into the smoking, grinning rush of first love and youthful rebellion. Electric, raw, it hits like the first drag of something you know you shouldn't want but can't resist. If its first single is any indication, "Heartbreak Highway" will be a ride worth taking. Smeltz may be new to the larger country scene, but with "Nicotine Daydream," he stakes his claim as one of the genre's most promising, evocative new voices.
"Nicotine Daydream" is a full-sprint time warp of back-to-backseat summers and late-night gambles. Smeltz cranks it to 10 on a rough-and-tumble, high-octane cut that resembles a dirt road detour between Luke Combs' power and Zach Bryan's emotion. Smoking with distortion and fire, the production is outshone by his gruff vocal, the type that sounds lived-in and a little dangerous.
At the heart of "Nicotine Daydream" is a sticky hook that dares you not to sing along. But what powers this way above another radio-ready hit is Smeltz's storytelling in high definition. He's not just telling you about the memory but also seatbelting you into the passenger seat. You can sense the wind blowing through those open windows, the landscape blurring in a madcap rush, and the tang of something sweet and dangerous conjured up on the horizon. It's Springsteen spirit through a modern Southern lens, and Smeltz wears it nicely.
The lead single off his upcoming July album, "Heartbreak Highway," is his opening statement. It contends that Blake Smeltz isn't here to jump on any bandwagons; he's here to make you feel something real. Equal parts raw and universal, "Nicotine Daydream" is the kind of song that makes you roll the windows down a little extra and blast the volume up.
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