The five singles from California Sunrise were progressive compared to Jon Pardi's "Heartache Medication." This weeping, booze-soaked swinger finds the hitmaker doubling down on a classic country sound.

Fiddle opens a timeless gettin'-over-you country song replete with steel guitar and neon. These aren't new themes for Pardi. There's a stroke of fatalism in even his most vibrant love songs that lets you know the story will eventually get him back to this honky-tonk bar stool, making friends with bartenders and a jukebox as old as the wood on the dance floor. To date, "She Ain't in It" was his most effective melancholy vocal, but that song was set up (as a radio single) by things going south during "Heartache on the Dance Floor," a more contemporary approach to country music from a man who's remained loyal to a more traditional definition.

With "Heartache Medication" (co-written by the singer with Barry Dean and Natalie Hemby), Pardi is a man hitting rock bottom — something the crying tone of his voice is suited for. It's a simple, four-on-the-floor arrangement that serves to complement his storytelling with a bustling rhythm and sweeping guitar tones. Listen close for the little electric guitar licks that pop between notes, running counter to the long chords that on their own would make the soundscape a bit too dramatic. Pardi's "Heartache Medication" is nothing if not believable.

Did You Know?: An album called Heartache Medication will drop on Sept 27. This will be Pardi's third album on UMG Nashville.

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Jon Pardi's "Heartache Medication" Lyrics:

Same ol’ dive / Same ol’ end of the work week drink / Bartender knows my name / But I don’t mind / She kicks them up strong / Serves me up right and …

Chorus:
Here I go again, I’m drinkin’ one, I’m drinkin’ two / I got my heartache medication / A strong dedication to gettin’ over you / Turnin’ me loose on that / Hardwood, jukebox, lost in neon time / My heartache medication, well it suits me fine / And I’m drinkin’ enough to take you off my mind / I got my heartache medication.

Another girl, another dance to a country song / Turnin’ me on, here’s to a good time and halfway to feeling alright and …

Repeat Chorus

Single, drinkin’ doubles, teardrops turnin’ into bubbles / And a little later on, I’ll probably find me some trouble.

Repeat Chorus

Heartache medication / Takin’ me away.

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