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ALABAMA 3 - "Revolver Soul"
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Written by Mark Reed
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Friday, 25 June 2010
The law of diminishing returns Could it be that the game is finally up? That, after fifteen years on the frontline of absurd country house communist techno blues, Alabama 3 have finally run out of fuel? Well... whatever it is, "Revolver Soul" is by no means bad, or unmelodic. It's just at this point, the lack of musical or lyrical progression, having incrementally matured by mere inches since John Major's Britain has finally stopped.
Great bands are always going in new places, trying new things. It may be elements at this point of slightly refining original obsessions, but there also comes a time when a band starts to repeat itself ; when the first song rolls on the thought of mercenaries, lowlife's, James Dean, and the Communist Manifesto, the idea could very well be of an adolescent worldview, a stunted alternate reality that is both the artists view of the world, and a refuge from an unsatisfactory world.
"Revolver Soul" is not anything less than another Alabama 3 album ; a solid, melodic, and powerful record. It's hummable, memorable, and chock full of great songs. But it is far from perfect - the production veers into the cheap, the rhythms occasionally generated from generic drum machine presets, and the introduction of the plethora of passing vocalists fracture the records sense of identity until it sounds like a compilation. "Jacqueline" and "She Blessed Me" are particular highlights - the alienating and autotuned "Keep Your Powder Dry" and overcrowded "Come On You Believers" pass in the press of a skip button. From time to time, especially on the more measured, glacially angry material, such as "Bad To The Bone", it reminds me of Alan Wilder's post-Depeche Mode soundscapes as "Recoil" that join atmospheres from all hemispheres to a tense mood. But is it a success? It's not, by any stretch, Alabama 3's finest work to date - the consolidation of existing ideas with no progression - and the formula may start to be yielding diminishing returns. If you want to start with Alabama 3, start somewhere else. If you're already one of the converted, then this is another dependable sermon.Only registered users can write comments.
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