Regarding the Blake Shelton song, "Came Here to Forget":
Music: The music was unusual but overly repetitive and monotonous. I didn't find the melody very interesting or aesthetically pleasing.
Music/Lyric Combo: The song struck me as having too many words jammed into it given the relatively slow pace of the music. This made it hard at times to follow what is being said. This rapid-fire style of singing is rather common nowadays, but I don't care for it much.
Lyrics: (1) Though ostensibly a "pain song", the lyrics were more angry than sorrowful. I guess it's not "cool" to feel pain in response to a breakup anymore--just wrath and revenge. (2) There was an interesting dichotomy between (a) the drunken, happy amorousness that the man and woman in the bar were feeling towards each other and (b) the brooding hatred (amplified by the music) that each felt towards their ex's. (3) Some cliché phrases (e.g., "misery loves company" and "thick as thieves") were unnecessarily thrown in.
I don't know exactly why this song "worked". I guess it's doing something that the younger crowd likes.