Dianna Corcoran In America -2016 (Universal)

Though a relative unknown in the United States, Dianna Corcoran now has four albums to her credit. The Australian’s first U.S release is aptly titled “In America.” The 36-year old has numerous production credits and took the reins on this one. She steers and bounces through 12 thoroughly pop laced tracks. She co-wrote all of them with contributions from Kristian Bush, Jenn Schott, Rebecca Lynn Howard and Gary Burr.

The album starts off with the lead single and upbeat girl anthem “God Did Good.” It’s a catchy but clichéd number about building a dream man that is sonically reminiscent of Kellie Pickler’s “Red High Heels.” It sets the tone for the rest of the way where the pop gloss and sing alongs dominate and the country is, at best, peppered in. Corcoran has an impressive five octave range which is best showcased on “Thank you For Cheating On Me.” It starts off on banjo and is the only hint of traditional instrumentation throughout the 40 minutes. In fact, the duet with Gary Burr, “Not Ready To Lose” has the most country feel to it, mostly because he sounds like Kenny Rogers.

The raw closer, “A Better Me” was performed on a back veranda and recorded on an iPhone. Thinking it would fare no better in the studio, she served it up as is. It is haunting in its minimalism and shows that the overall gloss pervading the rest of the album could be taken down a notch or two.

The last line of her bio reads…”Dianna Corcoran is here to stay, and America will never be the same. Trust us, country music hasn’t seen anything yet.” Actually, we’ve seen a whole lot of it. In fact, young female artists rising under the country umbrella with crossover appeal is kind of our thing. It is yet to be seen if Corky’s (as she is affectionately termed) success will continue here in the USA. One thing is certain, though, she’s certainly got the formula for it figured out.