For a certain kind of fan (me), quoting rock and roll lyrics falls somewhere in the yawning gap between fun and obsession. <\/p>\n
The reasons why are complex, but the important point here is, that might not be the case if not for virtual quote machines like American Aquarium songwriter \/ frontman BJ Barham; I wasn\u2019t three songs into this album before there were three quotes I wanted to note down. Barham has a gift for capturing simple ideas in emotionally compelling language within the context of rough-hewn, unpretentious Americana songs. As Bruce Springsteen\u2014who\u2019s obviously a major influence\u2014has proven, you can make meaningful music within that template if<\/i> you\u2019re good enough, and Barham most assuredly is.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also a bit of legend attached to this band\u2019s trajectory. In 2011, American Aquarium had been pushing hard through the perpetual write-record-release-touring cycle for six-plus years with little to show for their efforts when a tired and frustrated Barham threw up his hands and declared that their group\u2019s next album would be their last. Whereupon admirer Jason Isbell stepped up to produce 2012\u2019s Burn.Flicker.Die.<\/i><\/a>, which became the band\u2019s finest moment to date and a launching pad for the second phase of its career. Wolves<\/i> came along in 2015, followed by more touring and a complete makeover of the lineup behind Barham, which by 2018 consisted of Shawn Boeker (guitar), Joey Bybee (drums), Ben Hussey (bass), and Adam Kurtz (pedal steel), with featured guests Byron Berline (fiddle), John Fullbright (keyboards), and Dan Walker (Hammond organ).<\/p>\n Things Change<\/i> finds North Carolina native Barham further refining the craft of songwriting that has always been at the heart of his art. The music\u2014alt-country or Americana, depending on your genre orientation\u2014occasionally gets a bit hooky and heartland rock in flavor, but the serious-minded lyrics are always the focus, and sometimes have a tendency to just flow and flow like a Dylan opus. <\/p>\n In addition to quality storytelling, that approach demands a voice that\u2019s memorable, and Barham\u2019s is full of pleasant grit and urgency. Like Springsteen, he\u2019s an intelligent singer wielding an imperfect instrument that he recognizes just what to do with; the rough edges on display only add to the character of these songs. <\/p>\n Stately opener \u201cThe World Is On Fire\u201d is very much of that 2017-8 moment, when many people wondered if the American experiment had failed, but weren\u2019t about to walk away. \u201cThe load is heavy and the road is long \/ And we\u2019ve only begun the fight \/ We just can\u2019t give in, we just can\u2019t give up \/ We must go boldly into the darkness \/ And be the light,\u201d sings Barham, adding that \u201cThis ain\u2019t the country my grandfather fought for \/ But I still see the hate he fought against \/ Give rest to the tired, give mercy to the poor, give warmth to the huddled masses and I\u2019ll show you freedom.\u201d It\u2019s an earnest, heartfelt, powerful anthem about hanging onto hope.<\/p>\n \u201cCrooked & Straight\u201d follows with an urgent Drive-By Truckers-ish Southern rocker that\u2019s less explicitly political but just as topical, examining Barham\u2019s disillusionment with the hypocrisy of preaching love while practicing hate. Like many songs on this album, it\u2019s ultimately about resilience and finding your own path in the world. \u201cTough Folks\u201d adds to the impact with a ringing rocker about life in the South and standing firm in the face of adversity: \u201c\u2026last November I saw first hand \/ What desperation makes good people do \/ Life ain’t fair \/ Saddle up, boy, and see it through \/ Tough times don’t last \/ Tough folks do.\u201d<\/p>\n Barham\u2019s more somber and reflective side comes to the fore on the melancholy mid-tempo elegy for a lapsed friendship \u201cWhen We Were Younger Men.\u201d It\u2019s an evocative song full of nostalgia for simpler times (\u201cPetty on the radio, us runnin\u2019 down a dream\u201d) and a friendship that\u2019s been sundered by time and diverging paths. That reflective tone extends to \u201cOne Day At A Time,\u201d an airy acoustic country-folk number about getting sober that\u2019s full of great lines. \u201cSongs fulfill the human need \/ To sit back and watch another man bleed\u2026 Every now and then I miss \/ The way that highball glass would kiss \/ My lips like a long lost love welcoming me home.\u201d<\/p>\n The track list on the back cover neatly breaks the songs into sides like a vinyl LP; side two opens with the title track, a gentle anthem to our need to adapt: \u201cThings change and people don\u2019t stay the same.\u201d Then the easy-rambling \u201cWork Conquers All\u201d mixes a road song with a father-son coming of age tale: \u201cI packed my bags and set out to prove him wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI Gave Up The Drinking (Before She Gave Up On Me)\u201d is just what that title makes it sound like, a response to (and inversion of) all those country tunes celebrating drinking, a playful, bouncy \u201cI\u2019m not drinking anymore\u201d tune that celebrates sobriety with a series of punchlines. Penultimate track \u201cShadows Of You\u201d delivers the requisite melancholy breakup ballad (\u201cBut when the morning\u2019s embrace shed a light on your face, I saw leaving in your eyes\u201d), before closer \u201c\u2019Til The Final Curtain Falls\u201d offers a gentle counterpoint, a heartfelt song of devotion.<\/p>\n This album isn\u2019t perfect; there are moments here when Barham\u2019s earnestness overcomes his better instincts and the words of these songs begin to feel affected rather than authentic. But those are exceptions on a strong album that shows continuing growth toward the band\u2019s more recent\u2014and terrific\u2014albums Lamentations<\/i><\/a> and Chicamacomico<\/i><\/a>. Things Change<\/i> is the work of a gifted artist who\u2019s still learning and growing, a craftsman refining his craft in real time, and its best moments are superb.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":34748,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[10618],"rating":[5617],"class_list":["post-46605","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-american-aquarium","rating-rating-b-plus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/46605","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\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/46605\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=46605"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=46605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}