On their first record in five years, Cracker has come back with a diverse double album, partially recorded with their original lineup from the first record. One of the classic modern rock bands of the \u201890s, the band is still going strong and has reemerged with their best album in years.<\/p>\n
The first disc, Berkeley, is the rocking half, something the band hasn\u2019t done in quite a while. Songs like \u201cMarch Of The Billionaires\u201d and the main single, the amazing \u201cWaited My Whole Life\u201d will remind listeners of the Cracker that brought us classics like \u201cTeen Angst\u201d and \u201cLow.\u201d By bringing back original bassist and backing singer Davey Faragher and drummer Michael Urbano, the band feels more relaxed and sure of themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeautiful\u201d is the type of song that should work but ultimately doesn\u2019t grab the listener like \u201cWaited My Whole Life.\u201d There\u2019s an overtly political tone to several tracks that the band chooses to focus on and it\u2019s interesting to hear. \u201cEl Cerrito\u201d is a bit funkier than other Cracker songs and it\u2019s nice to hear a different side to the band.<\/p>\n
Rockers like \u201cYou Got Yourself Into This\u201d show the band\u2019s biggest strengths: Lowery\u2019s unique vocals and Johnny Hickman\u2019s excellent guitar playing. Definitely an album highlight.<\/p>\n
Right from the get go on \u201cCalifornia Country Boy,\u201d disc two takes on a completely different feel. It sounds like a great \u201860s country song blasting out of an AM radio and finds the band digging into their influences. \u201cAlmond Grove\u201d is a great, laidback track that stands out from the rest for its vibe.<\/p>\n
The music on disc two is very mellow and downbeat; the overall twanginess matching a lot of the lyrics and the music has always been one of Cracker\u2019s strongest aspects. The downbeat feel of \u201cTonight I Cross the Border\u201d makes it feel like one of those great old country songs of yore that we\u2019ve all grown up on. Forget Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line, music like this is REAL country.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m Sorry Baby\u201d is the main standout on disc two; it\u2019s just a classic Cracker ballad amped up to 11 and destined to be one of those album tracks diehard fans will always crank. \u201cThe San Bernadino Boy\u201d is a great showcase for Johnny Hickman\u2019s voice and guitar work. Hell, the song sounds like a hootenanny recorded in a barn somewhere.<\/p>\n
The album ends with some unique ballads but ultimately, disc one is the better of the two, just because the songs are harder with more funk to them. Disc two has some great songs as well, but ultimately, the Berkeley side wins. But after almost thirty years, Cracker has made some of their best material twenty-five years in \u2013 and that\u2019s something most bands from their generation cannot say.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":32231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[7462],"rating":[5615],"class_list":["post-43984","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-cracker","rating-rating-b"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/43984","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43984"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/43984\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32231"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=43984"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=43984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}