Album- Pioneer
Artist- The Band
Perry
After breaking into the music scene with their huge selling
hit “If I Die Young”, the Band Perry have been a strong staple of the country
music scene, with a platinum selling debut album and a seemingly ever growing
fan base. With this new album the band seem to have a bolder sound based on
their single releases, but have the group actually created a record that shows
a progression from their previous album?
Track 1- Better Dig
Two
The opening number and the records lead single is a dark
country affair that is backed by a cool rock vibe against the twangy banjo
riffs and typical country sounds. The songs is centred around a simple hook
that is catchy as lead singer Kimberly Perry plays the role of a wife who sings
to her husband and tells him that should he die before her, then she would
rather die and be buried next to him than live without him. The songs sentiment
could easily be misconstrued as a sweet message, but when you actually listen
to the track the song as a definitively dark aura about it with the stop and
start rhythm and punchy chorus that is strong in its statement that she will
die. The song is also really dark in some of the lyrical content and the
transitions between the chorus and the verses which are powerfully orchestral
based and sound melancholic. Furthermore, Kimberly has a delicate vocal within
the track in certain sections, whilst the chorus is punchy and works well in
contrast to the softer moments. The mid tempo track puts a cool spin on the
idea of love, and although the sound is quite typical of today’s country
market, the chorus has a strong catchy quality and Kimberly brings a sense of
sincerity to the number, making this a strong opener and a good lead single.
3.5/5
Track 2- DONE.
From the dark mid tempo sound of the latter track we are
transferred into a strong up tempo mode which is less dark and just more in
your face aggressive. Chosen as the records second single, I feel it is a good
song choice in showing a side of the band that casual listeners probably
haven’t seen before. And furthermore it’s just a really catchy country number.
It is almost the antithesis of the previous track in terms of the lyrical
sentiment, as Kimberly sings about this man who just isn’t doing his best in
this relationship and is acting like a kind of jerk, and so although her mother
taught her to play nice, she’s giving up on this relationship and is
aggressively moving on cause she is firmly done. The lyrically quality is
strong, with the chorus being very catchy and the verses having a cool story
telling quality. Vocally Kimberly is also really great within the song,
bringing a great sass to her vocal performance and just sounds very powerful
throughout the whole track. The clunky guitar rhythms and forceful drum beats
and are also really strong, with the guitar solo at the end of the bridge sounding
really great and being that moment where you and the band can both let go. A
great song that will definitely sound great live.
4/5
Track 3- Don’t Let Me
Be Lonely
From the punchy and aggressive edge of the previous number
we transiton to a more subdued in tone but still powerful in message song that
draws on a familiar country style in terms of the way that it builds. The track
is powerfully based in love as Kimberly powerfully sings of life and how you
can just go through it and it quickly goes, and she doesn’t want to be left
lonely in the world and needs her heart opened by someone. The message is both
sad and sweet, with the message being powerfully distilled in the emotionally
loaded hook. And Kimberly sounds vocally strong within the track, with the boys
backing her up in terms of the backing vocals and harmonising well. The sound
of the track with the light guitar riffs that build and are joined by heavy
drums is quite similar to the sound of other groups like the Band Perry, but
with the ideology of the track this sound really works, and so we can forgive
the band for this, particularly when at the end Kimberly really shows how
powerful and awesome her voice is, and when the band do sound really emotional
in what they are singing and almost a little fragile.
3.5/5
Track 4- Pioneer
A softer edge is shown on this track that is a little
similar in tone to the bands previous work, such as “If I Die Young”. The title
of the track to me sounded like a weird name for a song, but in listening to the
song it makes complete sense. The basis of the lyrics are focused upon Kimberly
telling this person that she will go anywhere with them, asking where they are
going but not caring as she knows she will go, because this person is one who
will just venture into the unknown. She also tells this pioneer to be careful
and not let his heart be trouble. With her light and lilting vocal performance
Kimberly makes the song a chilled listen and gives a sincere quality to the
track, before the powerful bridge kicks in with it’s grand and fast paced
urgency that builds to a powerful finish that shows that Kimberly and her
pioneer will venture out no matter what. The lyrical content is good in that it
has the capability to have different meanings for each listener, with the
pioneer potentially being a family member or a partner. The production of the
track is also strong in the way that it builds, having a light tone through the
use of delicate strings and simple guitar instrumentation before the steady
drum beats begin, and then the bridge starts with it’s stomping stop and start
rhythm and faster guitar riffs, whilst the harmonization of the group becomes
stronger to give some power to the final section before ending on a sweet note.
3.5/5
Track 5- Forever Mine
Nevermind
Co-written by another big country star of the moment, Brad
Paisley, the fifth track puts us back into an up tempo state and brings back
the biting angst of DONE. as Kimberly sings of this guy who send that he would
be hers forever but that was in fact a lie, and she’s just really not happy
about it, employing an array of imagery of people losing things to show how
she’s angry and happy about losing this mind. Opening with a both cool and
weird “na na na” intro that becomes the hook of the song, the lyrical content
of the track is not as strong as the previous numbers, as although the create a
catchy chorus, some of the verses come across as too much of a cliché, and the
“na na na” hook draws a fine line between catchy and annoying. Whilst the
lyrics aren’t as great as they should be the vocals maintain the same power as
the other tracks, not quite having the sass of DONE. but still having a
powerful tone and drifting nicely between sweet innocence and feisty woman. The
production is also really strong, with the light guitar riffs making for a good
up tempo sound. The bridge is also a particularly strong moment with its gospel
like qualities that make for a really strong finish, with the electric guitar
moments of the final section allowing for a catchy close to the track.
3/5
Track 6- Night Gone
Wasted
Kimberly states in one particular potent lyric of this
track: “Oh my heart is banging to the beat of the band”. And with this track
The Band Perry seem to wish to do exactly the same in a send up to the good
times of just getting drunk and having fun, centred around the idea of a night
gone wasted (i.e. you might have technically just got drunk and therefore
wasted the night, but you also just got wasted from alcohol and just had fun
because of it). The song powerfully distils the fun of such activity and is
helped by the vocal performance of Kimberly, who brings a kind of gritty tone
to this piece and really lets rip in the bridge to get you up at least by the
songs finish. In terms of the production the band also keep things really cool
and vibrant with a clunky guitar rhythms that acts as the base for the heavy
drum beats and grand electric guitar riffs, with the bridge being another
moment where a guitar solo is employed to great effect. The track also really
works in the way that it has a hip swinging tone but isn’t annoyingly extremely
up tempo, and so excites you even more because of this. A big country stomper
that also works in the divergence from the love based theme.
3.5/5
Track 7- I Saw a
Light
After the stomping have fun atmosphere of the previous
number we return to a more traditional love based country tune with this light
and sweet song that sounds like a good track for lovestruck teenagers. From the
moment this track begins the country sensibilities of the band come powerfully
through in the use of the banjo instrumentation and accordion sounds that
immediately signal a folk/country sound. And this sound is just built on as the
track continues, with the chorus having a typical country sound with the
employment of the thumping bass drum and grand guitar riffs. Yet whilst the
sound is perhaps something country fans will find familiar, over all there is
lightness to the sound that welcomingly ties in with the lyrical message, and
so it just sounds fun and fresh. The lyrics have a powerful basis in the idea
of love as Kimberly plays the role of a girl who has been struck powerfully by
love and just has this strong feeling for this boy, with the hook cementing the
strength of her emotions with the idea of seeing the light, a saying commonly
associated with religious behaviour. Vocally this is one of Kimberly’s best
moments and is cool in how it flips the dark and delicate qualities of the
opening track, instead showing the lightness and power of her vocal abilities.
A slight issue with the track is that initially the role of this love struck
girl doesn’t seem to suit Kimberly or the record, but the song really builds
and at some point you will be easily won over.
3.5/5
Track 8- Mother Like
Mine
Love seems to be a key theme for the group with this record,
but they keep things interesting in the way that they approach the concept,
never always going for the boy girl combination. Instead this acts as a love
song for the bands mother, as Kimberly sings of the greatest of her mother,
using an array of imagery to express how she has had a powerful effect on the
siblings, and furthermore expressing the idea that if the world had a mother
like theirs then life would be so much better. It’s a really sweet sentiment
that is executed to good effect with the catchy chorus and the simple hook, and
although the imagery is clichéd, Kimberly’s light vocal performance gives a
nice touch of sincerity to the track, and so the clichés can be ignored. The
vocal performance is also great in the way that Kimberly conveys a sense of
warmth to the listener through the emphasis on the last word of each line in
the chorus, which gives a lovely lilting tone to the track. In terms of
production things are kept quite simple with a steady drum back beat and
delicate guitar instrumentation that just keeps things chilled and allows the
message of the track to come through even more powerfully. A really sweet
track, this is a song that would be great for mother’s day and is a song that
all the people who love their mother strongly should really listen to.
3.5/5
Track 9- Chainsaw
Another one of the few songs that the band didn’t right
themselves, this track brings us back to a more faster tempo and aggressive
personality. The track is reminiscent of the bitterness of DONE. as Kimberly
sings of how her and her man were so in love and wrote their names on this tree
to mark how it would last forever, but things changed and now she’s going to
cut down the tree out of bitterness. The chorus has a catchy quality and second
chorus has a dark statement that cuts into the heart of what it means to be in
love. Vocally Kimberly is strong, with the verses being softer and providing a
nice contrast with the edgier chorus. Production wise the group also keep it
simple with a familiar country sound of heavy drums and banjo riffs. Yet whilst
it is a good song, it does feel a little bit like we have heard what is being
sung already, and vocally (and to a certain extent lyrically) the track likes
the sass and venom that really makes for a bitter song that stands out.
3/5
Track 10- I’m a
Keeper
With the beginning of the track and it’s slightly distorted
guitar bass line I thought this would be an intriguing song, and it is indeed
this in terms of the slightly more pop orientated vibe of the track, although
the country roots are still there. The production is really powerful with the
bouncy instrumentation of the guitars and the steady drum beats aligned with
some cool and quirky piano instrumentation that is reminiscent of a western
saloon sound. The track is also great in the production in how the bridge is a
moment that really builds towards a strong finish, something that by this point
is seemingly something that the band can always pull off and always make sound
great. The bitterness of the previous track kind of continues with this number
as Kimberly sings how she is a unique and sweet individual who can survive
without this guy, because she is just an awesome and someone that a guy she
really hold onto. The chorus is extremely catchy and the hook immediately grabs
your attention. And this attention grabbing is also really helped by Kimberly
and the boys who exhibit some nice vocal harmonization, whilst Kimberly once
again gives a powerful vocal, with the final chorus really showing that she is
perhaps one of country music’s newest divas as she ad libs to perfection to
give the track pizazz and sass. It’s a great song in terms of the potential to
show how they are a potential great country/pop crossover act.
3.5/5
Track 11- Back to Me
Without You
Things become a lot more subdued and mid tempo with this
song in which the band show a sense of fragility. The track finds Kimberly
focusing on this guy who has been like another limb in her life for so long,
but now things have ended so she has to get back to a state where she can
function without this song. The track has a dark undertone and is lyrically
strong in terms of the passion of the chorus and the simple statement of “back
to me without you”. Vocally Kimberly is once again very strong, but the boys of
the band also come out a bit more within this song and nicely emphasise how
this is a group, whilst also perhaps offering a small two fold perspective to
the track. The potentially dark quality of the track comes out prominently in
the catchy production, which begins with a fragile and simple piano melody
before the haunting organ kicks in and then the guitar instrumentation and
forceful drum beats come into the fray. The bridge is also once again another
epic moment which gives a cool slice of almost Italian flavouring to the track
and a fast paced urgency to the final chorus that is such a strong finish.
3.5/5
Track 12- End of Time
The album ends on a typical fragile and down tempo country
number that is quite beautiful in it’s simple country tone. The track also
offers both a closure in terms of the album but also in terms of the idea of
love, as Kimberly sings of how things have just changed and it is the end of
time of this relationship, which is sad. It is another powerful number where
vocally Kimberly is extremely strong and production feels very polished and
nice in terms of the way that it builds to always capture us by the end. It’s
another solid number that is a nice album closer and which shows that this is a
group that can do very little wrong.
3.5/5
Final Review
The Band Perry is just a great country group in the way that
they created a sound that has a true wide spread appeal, with tight lyrical
concepts and executions that will appeal to many, vocals that always have a
flawless quality and bring a sense of power and personality to nearly every
track, and production that is really polished and tuned into what works with
the songs message and what will sound great for the listener. They also create
a sound that is very much rooted in country in tone, but which could very
easily slip into mainstream pop, and so this is a very exciting group that will
definitely remain in the music scene for a while if they keep producing albums
like this.
9/10
Best Track- DONE.
Worst Track- Chainsaw
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