The Performance
I have to say up front that although country star Jason Aldean has released three albums since 2005 and has been at the top of the country charts, I've never heard of him until I sat down to view this release for review. It's not that I don't like country music, mind you, it's that I don't particularly care for Aldean's brand of mainstream country music. You'd be much more likely to find me listening to Steve Earle, Ryan Adams, Gillian Welch, The Jayhawks, or Johnny Cash than most anything that the Nashville establishment deems acceptable enough to reach the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
With that being said, I sat down to watch Jason Aldean: Wide Open Live and More with more than a little skepticism, but was pleasantly surprised that Aldean's music, at least in this live setting at the Knoxville Coliseum in Tennessee, was a lot less glossy and more guitar-driven than I thought it would be. The guy sure can rock and some of his tunes are a bit catchy. Some songs that immediately stood out for me were "Amarillo Sky," the title track, "Wide Open," and "She's Country," which hearkens back to AC/DC's "Back in Black" with its halting rhythm guitar riff. And those "country girls" in the audience sure seemed to love it too. By the way the crowd was getting into his performance, it's not difficult to gather why Aldean is such a rising star on the country scene.
The Picture
Wide Open Live and More has a solid AVC/MPEG-4 encoding of its 1080i/60 source. Flesh tones are spot on, blacks are inky and detail is sharp. There's an overall three-dimensionality and lifelike clarity to the image making it one of the better releases in Eagle Rock's impressive catalogue of concert discs. Still, there are some minor issues with color banding that crop up in the dark backgrounds from time to time.
The Sound
After the disappointing sound quality of the Jamiroquai: Live at Montreux release I last reviewed from Eagle Rock, I was glad to hear them back on track with this release from Jason Aldean. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is open, dynamic and has good instrument separation across the front. The surrounds are filled with ample amounts of ambience and just enough crowd noise for a good live feel. Low frequencies, though not earth shattering, are deep and musical. High frequencies are just a tad on the harsh and grungy side, but never fatiguing.
The Extras
Wide Open Live and More is provided with two extras, a bonus performance of Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down" (1.78:1; 1080i/60) and a behind-the-scenes interview with Aldean entitled Up Close and Personal with Jason Aldean (1.78:1; 1080i/60). Both should be welcome additions for fans of the country performer.
Final Thoughts
For fans of mainstream country music, this Jason Aldean Blu-ray Disc release will be a real treat; he may even be able to win over some non-country fans with his brand of guitar-based music. Eagle Rock has added another fine release to their truly impressive canon of concert discs.
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