survivor

Off To The Slaughterhouse (Chase Rice, Lambs & Lions review)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

I’ve been humbled once again. I bought a record on a whim, made some initial judgments based on the cover art and what I heard as I listened for the first time to a lean thirty seven minutes of modern country music, except that’s not what this is, at all.

It’s an escape plan marked all over with pencil and featuring focal points that are highlighted atop the map with black felt tip circles.

But is it a success?

 

 

Chase Rice – Lambs & Lions

released November 17, 2017
****** 6/10

Chase Rice is an American singer-songwriter that got his start in country music, and benefited heavily from the party anthems that have permeated this decade. Do you remember Florida Georgia Line’s song Cruise? Rice co-wrote it. Ever listen to the hit album, Ignite The Night? Rice is the artist behind the party anthems about drinking, pickup trucks, and young women. Ever watch Survivor? Rice was the runner-up on the Nicaragua season.

He is something of a relic at this time in music – Ironic, given that we have three more years before the twenties start up. Bro-country is finally on it’s way out, and artists like Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean and Jake Owen have already felt the pressure of a dismissive public.

This is part of the reason why Rice decided to break from Columbia records and sign with Broken Bow Records for his fourth album, Lambs & Lions. The other reason being, that wanted to make a more emotionally honest and truly authentic record, when authenticity in country music should have meant sticking to the well-worn tracks established.

Lions kicks off the album, and Rice establishes early on that this is his break from his past, it has the same energy as his previous albums, but the tone is shifting towards rock, metal, power pop, and even some R&B. It’s especially evident that this album is stripped of a lot of the production that his previous music had when Unforgettable, Eyes On You, and Saved Me show up.

Three Chords & The Truth is the first single on the record, and trending on the music charts right now, but despite this popularity, it really is an interesting song with some subtle nods to the genre of country music, and funnily enough, while on a soul search, he has managed to connected with many other people looking for answers in country music too.

In the end, this is a collection of songs about someone who is letting go of an identity that they wore for a long time, self-imposed or no, and what shows up underneath is pretty interesting. It’s not my favourite record of the year by any means, but the hope it delivers is more important in some ways.

Pros: You can see throughout Lambs & Lions that Rice is putting more of himself into his music, and a personal favourite of mine is Amen, which is an ode to his father, revealing a lot of Rice’s personal code.

Cons: I wish that there was even more exploration on this album. It still feels a little bit safe reliant on what preceded. It might have been difficult for Chase Rice to break completely from his bro-country roots, but including Jack Daniel’s Showed Up is so unnecessary.

Runtime: 37 minutes

Points of Interest: The album debuted at No. 42 on the Billboard 200, and No. 6 on the Top Country Albums. Rice has said that the album is heavily influenced by rock artist Douglas Docker.

Changing your identity is a challenge, even moreso when there is a perception of you attached to it. Chase Rice has made some excellent strides into a new and exciting direction, with music that features more of his own ideas and less concern with sounding a specific way. And I like it.

theories Summarized

I’m not sure that you absolutely have to pick this up. But if you like your country music with a little rock n’ roll, you are sick of bro-country or you simply like to see progression in your artists, give this album a listen, you might just be inspired to show your fleece, while bearing your teeth. That’s my theory anyway.

Tim!

Sweet ‘n Sour (Beyoncé, Lemonade review)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

At first I was afraid, I was petrified. Kept thinking I could never live without you by my side. But then I spent so many nights thinking about how you did me wrong, and I grew strong, and I learned how to get along.

I Will Survive is a fantastic song, and while I have no real proof that it inspired the song Survivor, Gloria Gaynor did sing a mashup of the two songs this past January, which I think is proof enough.

Even before this week’s Melodic Monday artist broke out on her own, I knew she was a survivor.

Beyoncé – Lemonade
released April 23, 2016
********* 9/10

beyonce-lemonade-1200x1294

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, better known by her stage name Beyoncé, is an American singer, songwriter, producer and sometimes actress. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as lead singer of Destiny’s Child, which was managed by her father, Mathew Knowles.

Destiny’s Child eventually took a break though, which saw the release of Beyoncé’s debut album, Dangerously in Love in 2003, and firmly established her as a solo artist and Grammy award winner. That was five solo albums ago though, and now Beyoncé has had Golden Globe nominated film appearances, married rapper Jay Z, came up with an alternate persona in Sasha Fierce, won 24 VMAs and 20 Grammy awards.

Let’s talk about bae, no not Jay Z. I mean Bey, Queen B, Mothe Bee, Sasha Fierce, JuJu.

Despite what the tabloids and internet have been telling you, this album was not about Jay Z, he features in it, whether he wants to or not. This is an incredibly raw and wriggly portrait into the soul of a pop music entity which acts like Adele, Taylor Swift, and Ellie Goulding might get to see some day. Bey says it best herself “who the fuck do you think I is?” somehow making Jack White more venerable and snarly then we’ve seen from him in years.

But there are three other songs that cover the gamut of her feelings on being forced to deal with a broken heart – from middle-fingers-up, feeling crazy, to praying over and over. And we get these tracks right out of the gate via Pray You Catch Me, Hold Up, Don’t Hurt Yourself, and Sorry. As someone who was in a LT relationship at one point (and which ended badly), I can very easily identify with her mourning over wasted love.

However, as the album moves along at a breakneck pace, we get to explore civil rights issues as they exist today, for black woman, in Freedom, which is my favourite track by far. AND there is a country track called Daddy Lessons that has more twang than anything I can think of on the local radio station dedicated to those sounds. But there’s also Formation which is also rather political and important to consider in light of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Other songs talk about a relationship on the mend in Sandcastles, Forward, and All Night, though I would agree with others in saying that Sandcastles is the weakest link in the chain.

At first I thought the album name was stupid, but upon reviewing it months later, and especially at the recommendation of some much respected cultural gurus, I can see how she was able to to make lemonade out of pretty substantial jar full of lemonades.

 

 

 

Beyoncé probably says it best herself though when she exclaims “I’mma keep running because a winner don’t quit on themselves.” She figured out a way to stay strong and move on even if her album does have a happy ending. I suspect this has a lot to do with her ability to run with whatever life throws her way, just adding another chapter to the book of B.

Tim!