Keith Urban Explains Creativity Behind ‘Fuse’

Keith Urban's latest album, 'Fuse,' is still two weeks away from its Sept. 10 release date, but the singer already has plenty to say about the 13-track record. The new project, he explains, will introduce fans to a different side of his creativity that he has never shared, until now.

"Part of the record started out from sort of a sonic, rhythmic instrumentation aspect, bringing things together that I hadn't done before," he tells Country Now.

But the 45-year-old says that, while he branched out for the new set of tunes, it still bears resemblance to all of his previous albums.

"I'm not trying to make a record that doesn't sound anything like me," he adds. "In some ways, that's easy to do. It's easy to make a record that doesn't sound anything like me. I can go and do that. But try and make a record that sounds like me, but trying to expand on it. That's all I've been trying to do."

Urban utilized several different producers, including Nathan Chapman, Mike Elizondo and Jay Joyce, to record 'Fuse,' which he says is what helped create the record's unique sound.

"I love working with people who play a lot of instruments, and really, all these guys play lots of instruments and they program and play synths and they can build an entire track just on their own," Urban observes. "I love the idea of working close and collaboratively with people like that so we can work quickly and we can not have to try and get this vision across to six, seven, eight different people in the studio -- not exclusively, but I like starting like that.”

While the New Zealand-born artist utilized some of pop music's most well-known producers for 'Fuse,' he says his new CD is still decidedly country.

"Country music, what I've always loved about it, it knows how to reach out and bring in new elements," he adds. "Country has always done it. It always goes out to pop, brings elements back, makes a fusion. The only difference is, what used to happen is, then country would pull back, and get rid of all that stuff, and go back to traditional, and I don't know that that's going to happen again."

Overall, Urban says that all of the hard work and effort he poured into 'Fuse' has already paid off, even before the album hits shelves.  “It’s been incredibly liberating, creatively, for me,” he explains. “I don’t know why that is, because I’ve always been fortunate enough to make the records I want to make. I think just working with other people has just been a really enjoyable thing.”

Urban just announced more dates for his Light the Fuse tour, which will wrap up on Feb. 1 in Nashville. See his upcoming shows here.