Adam Randall’s “Bodies & Souls Were Meant To Be Together”
“There are moments in Adam Randall’s music that I think are pretty wonderful, and draw me back for a second listen. Then there are parts, different songs, parts of the same song, or even certain layers in the arrangement that shake my attention.” -BY
Beth Yeckley
6.8
out of 10
Adam Randall
Bodies & Souls Were Meant to be Together
October 21, 2008
Unsigned
There are moments in Adam Randall’s music that I think are pretty wonderful, and draw me back for a second listen. Then there are parts, different songs, parts of the same song, or even certain layers in the arrangement that shake my attention. It’s no surprise that, at least on Myspace, he rubs elbows with the likes of Andy Zipf and Parachute Musical (both previously reviewed/ interviewed on this site). He’s in a similar vein; Although accompanied by a band, he’s got that singer/ songwriter soloist in the corner of a coffee shop sort of vibe. He’s got a voice that can command a room, at times sounding like Colin Meloy of The Decemberists (which is totally a compliment).
Where I get the most tripped up is in the instrumentation. “Narrow House” begins with Jose Gonzalez-like guitar strumming (dirty, kind of and then bleeds into beautiful cello play. The percussion is simple, but excellent structure. Randall sings, “In the narrow house we are alone/ And we all must go there one by one/ And there is no turning back/ And there is no other door,” and you find yourself walking through this house with him.
Then comes along “The Biggest Wheel,” which presents a layering of elements that sounds a little forced, almost too raw. I feel a dissonance between the instrumentation and the vocals on “Casualties In A War With God,” like they are operating on two different planes—the guitar forced to slow down for the vocals. “Let The Mystery Stand” is too simple, with a two-chord, non-stop strumming Americana meets pop vibe that I could forego. And the last five songs of the album lose me to an unpolished and mildly repetitive nature that holds little appeal, although maybe they would be more interesting live.
But there are other highlights on this album, beyond “Narrow House.” “Bodies & Souls Were Meant To Be Together” is a wonderful song. Randall’s vocals are throaty, reminiscent of Damien Rice, paired with well-achieved falsettos that could resemble the shiny peaks on a meringue pie. It’s a soothing song that sings, “I heard you died/ In perfect peace/ In perfect peace/ With your wife there/ Beside the bed/ Fast asleep/ We climb so high/ We can’t keep up/ We can’t keep up.”
And “Moment” offers a nice acoustic intro that doesn’t sound rough, like fumbling hands stretching for chords, but rather boasts like the man on the mountain. It treads a soulful seam and really highlights Randall’s ability to vocally capture that feeling deep down in your belly. That he can sing, “This is the moment/ That you’ve been waiting for/ The dream you dreamed of/ Is just outside the door,” being equal parts milky smooth and burning fire, is enough to validate Adam Randall’s true talent to me. The cello is re-introduced, and this song creates a harmonious arrangement that would allow you to play this song a dozen times and still want more.
Adam Randall is good, and worth a listen. But I have to be choosy with his songs, because they don’t run together, in harmony or quality. The album is worth individual downloads, but probably not the whole thing.
I like the whole album. There may be a little repetition, but an album where every song is wildly different would be hailed as disjointed. This album has a theme and the songs tell a story and I like how it progresses.
What!!!! Who the heck is this Beth Yeckley chick? She is obviously accustomed to reviewing/listening to fly-by-night teeny bopper music or something. She clearly does not know or UNDERSTAND true artistic talent…..the artists that swim against the current and produce something original, emotional, and raw. She obviously just didn’t ‘get it’, and had to meet quota to get her article out before her deadline.
She should have taken a few moments to TRULY listen to how you put your heart and soul onto paper and create something beautiful through your music. Ms. Yeckley probably did not know how to classify/critique your ORIGINAL music since she is more than likely used to the Lady GaGa’s , Britney Spears, and Justin Bieber’s out there. Its probably what is in her iPod right now as she drove into work to write about your talent.
Adam, and I mean this with all sincerity, you are a TRUE artist with incredible talent. Your songs have spoken to my soul, made me reflect, brought out raw emotion in me, and have made me smile…..countless times. When one person and band can do that to the masses, you KNOW that your art/talent is amazing and that people ‘ GET YOU.’
Keep smiling, keep creating, keep playing…….for the MAJORITY of us out here welcome your music to feed our musical appetite. We love you, and as always……always anticipating more of your musical goodness :)
I like the whole album as well. He actually does “rub elbows” with Andy Zipf not just on Myspace; he opened up for him, Damion Suomi, and Paleface a few months back. Adam’s voice is a little bit rock, a little folk, and at times a little bit pop; but I don’t think that is a bad thing. It makes him more appealing to a broader audience. He reminds me of Live, James Taylor, Duncan Shiek, and REM all in one. If you ever get a chance to see him live DO IT!
One of my favorite albums of all time! Maybe you do have to see them live to really get it, but I’ve never found the album to be repetitive or unpolished, unless you consider raw to be unpolished. This is definitely one of those albums you should check out for yourself and definitely, definitely see this band live!
I think the one thing that stands out to me is that I know Adam personally; if you know him then you know his music! Sure with any artist there will be songs you wont like but with anything in life you have to take the good with the bad.
Adam, Great Job!
“Ms. Yeckley probably did not know how to classify/critique your ORIGINAL music since she is more than likely used to the Lady GaGa’s , Britney Spears, and Justin Bieber’s out there”
I literally lol’d at that one^
Criticism is good, but really, let’s not be silly.
Do people only comment on the less than positive reviews? I want someone to berate me because I accurately wrote about my reception of an album, too!
Also, Beth said really great, positive things about Adam Randall. What, are there five sentences that are less than positive? Is it just that she gave it a 6.8? I don’t understand any of these criticisms with her review.
Beth is actually nicer than I would be in some parts. Randall’s strumming on “Narrow House” is no where near the level intricacy that Jose Gonzalez brings to his finger picking. “Big Wheel” reminds me of modern praise and worhsip music, with a simple, easy to repeat refrain – and I say this because it feels like it was made to be overly catchy, bot memorable for deep, haunting lyrics. I’d honestly like this album is it was less produced, more raw. And in parts, Randall reminds me of Liam or Noel Gallagher, just a little too ‘whingy’.
Thing is though, y’all? I still like some of his music. Why? Because I agree with Beth on many, many points.
Anyway, Beth, good job. I’m going to buy a few of these songs. :)
The next time I read a web site, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as significantly as this a single. I mean, I know it was my choice to read, but I truly believed youd have one thing interesting to say. All I hear is often a bunch of whining about something that you could fix should you werent too busy looking for attention.
“This record is not great”……”YES IT IS!”….”I mean it has its moments, but it doesn’t blow me away”….”IT’S THE GREATEST RECORD IN THE WORLD!”…..”I don’t really love it”…..”You’re an idiot!”…..”I still don’t like it”…..”KISS MY ASS YOU HATER!”
Can somebody get me out of middle school?