An Album Release from Bicentennial Drug Lord
The latest and greatest from Bicentennial Drug Lord delivers a massive and cinematically driving rock approach in the form of a 10-track record featuring some outstanding pieces of work that speak volumes for the project and this is an album that you should be listening to from start to finish simply because it gives you some surprises, some songs hit harder than others, and certain tracks really take you on these Journeys both lyrically and musically.
The You Are Never Alone album starts off with "This Pabst Blue Ribbon", which features a cross of what I would consider classic rock and hints of Americana with a Southern undertone, especially in those guitars that can be really twangy but also deliver addictive and sort of colorful hooks.
I love the vocal approach on this track and how the song ends up feeling so full-bodied, which is amazing because this track does a great job of introducing the entire album as a whole.
There are a few staples that you get from this song and end up having more of throughout the record's course.
Having said that, as I mentioned before, there are plenty of surprises around the corners, and there's some diversity in the songwriting as well.
"Caught Wishing" is the track that follows, and this one has a lot more of that cinematic feel to it with organs filling the space in the background and sort of free-flowing but heavy-ish guitar tones.
One of the things I loved about this track is not only the chorus, which really sticks with you, but the way that they bring in these guitar solo harmony sections and how those add layers to the track and a bit of depth to some of the sentiment of the song as well.
The guitar work across this whole record is actually pretty outstanding, and this track is one of the better examples of exactly what I'm talking about.
Songs like "Like An Accident" give off that southern undertone. This track has a strong Americana feel, that southern swing and its rhythm, and the air of a live performance energy-wise wise which is all wonderful to soak in, and it's a track that really exemplifies some of the spirit of the record.
Others like "Rock Bottom" have a certain way of following suit with those kinds of tendencies, but also showcase some of the more personal aspects of the record.
By the time you get this far into the record, which is a little more than halfway, you begin to feel like this is almost like a concept record in a sense.
These songs have ways of connecting with each other. It feels kind of like they serve as chapters in someone's life, and you're hearing them unfold. A lot of it has to do with how it's lyrically portrayed and how those lyrics can really be pretty descriptive in a sense, which pulls you into those stories even further.
There's a lot of vastness in the underbelly of this record and I enjoyed that a lot. Those layers of depth and spacious Ambience that exist just underneath its surface is wonderful and also helps drive that classic rock and cinematic backbone even further.
This is a record that is derived from a lot of classic rock, and you can hear that in the arrangements and songwriting, but it's also got plenty of that southern tone, as I mentioned before. That combination, which usually would go hand in hand, feels great here.
You get to paint pictures as you listen to certain songs. There are bouts of honesty and memorable guitar parts with hooks and choruses that seem to bounce around in your head.
I said it before, and I'll say it again - this is an album to be listened to from start to finish.
This is the kind of record that you soak in as a whole because that's what it was meant for.
Yes, there are plenty of songs that stand on their own two feet as singles like "Iggy Pop" which has a harder rock tonality and loads of pop-coated catchiness, but listening to the album in full gives you a bigger and better experience.
I come from a time when you would hear a track on the radio and go to the store and buy the record. You would go home and listen to that whole album and it would take you into a whole different place.
That is what this record reminds me of. A real, genuine, Rock record that has plenty to say and stories to tell, but also takes you away from wherever you are and lets you sort of live through these different experiences.
It's almost like reading a good book or watching a film.
It gives you that sensation that you are satisfied when it's all over.
This was definitely a great record, and as far as rock albums go, it's one of the better ones I've heard in quite some time because of how genuine it comes through and its inventiveness, crossing the Southern and the classic rock super well but bringing in edgier tones along the way.
All of it was very well done, and I suggest listening to this whole thing in one shot.
