- Daughtry : by Daughtry

I'm not fan of AMERICAN IDOL, but I tend to always check out the contestant albums over at iTunes when they're released, and Daughtry's self-titled album (a smart move for a rocker who built his initial following based upon name recognition of a TV show) is an overwhelmingly pleasant surprise. Certainly, as is the case with almost any album, not all tracks are to my liking, but the entire roster is surprisingly solid, especially considering this to be a debut release. Some may inevitably gripe about comparisons to other bands -- Nickelback comes to mind -- and it would be easy to dismiss Daughtry on that argument alone, but you'd be missing some terrific tracks. Do like I do and sample the tracks first, and I'm sure you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised with "What I Want," a driving rock anthem featuring the legendary Slash. Also worth a listen are "What About Now," "There and Back Again," "Over You," "Home," and "Used To."

At a glance (or a quick listen), a few of the samples do sound a bit repetitive lyrically and musically. This is a weakness of the sampling system, though, and not the entire track. Having downloaded more than half the album this morning and given them a full run, I'm convinced that Daughtry is not only here to stay, but he'll be hanging around for some years to come.