Newspapers / North Carolina School of … / Feb. 1, 2012, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics Student Newspaper / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
february 2012 entertainment the stentorian \ ncssm Lana Del Rey, Dierks Bentley, and The Fray release new albums By: Marcy Pedzwater Lana Del Rey, The Fray, and Dierks Bentley, recently released new albums in the past month. Lana Del Rey’s album Bom to Die offers a haunting altemiiii\e sound. reflection on love and life. The album is laced with fluid melodies and sweet harmonies, with Del Rey’s haunting songs, like “Off to the Races,” which makes several references to the controversial novel, Lolita. The album has an eerie beauty running consistently throughout, such as the reflections on love and desperation in the song, “Videogames.” be a bit ambiguous, and it seems to chase a pop style that vaguely resembles Gwen Stefani, while it also seems to drive in the opposite direction for the bulk of the album. Del Rey appears to chase irbny in her music and lyrics to an extreme in which the lines become blurred, detracting from the potential and talent of Del Rey. Overall however, the album is a strong exhibition of a promising new artist, r 4/5 stars f The Fray Scars and Stories, released on Feb. 7, captures the growth of The Fray as i band, and displays their nusical finesse. The new album is musically impressive, with The Fray gives us a versatile pop-rock sound in their new album Scars and Stories, while Dierks Bentley’s new album Home lends a catchy country sound to the music scene. Lana Del Rey Bom to Die, released on Jan. 31, gives a snapshot of the to make use of strong dynamics in both the vocalists and the instrumentalists to create a captivating songs. The one low point of the album were the lyrics, which, with a few exceptions, seemed to lack depth and breadth, which detracted from the brilliant instmmentals of the album. The Fray reaffirmed their place in popular culture with an album that really exposed the bands musical abilities. 3.5/5 stars Dierks Bentley Home, released on Feb. 3, showcases the abilities of veteran country artist Dierks Bentley. Bentley has a soothing deep voice with just the right hint of a southern twang for a country artist. Bentley’s album embodies the good ol’ country boy with an ^ edge through songs such as “The Woods.” The album also has an American theme running through it, through songs such as, “Home,” which patriotically depict the best and worst of America, and the lyrics weaving the songs together. Del Rey’s lyrics are hardened and sorrowful with a theme of bad romance mnning through the majority of the songs. Dark undertones shadow some of the more carefree and upbeat emerging artist Lana Del Rey. The album title sets the tone for the album, a bittersweet Over all the album has a disturb- ng al lure that is comple mented by Del Rey’s versatile voice, which has an infec tious middle range as well as a clear sweet upper range. However, at times, songs on the album seem to stellar instrumentals that blend perfectly with the distinctive vocals of the lead singer Isaac Slade. The band displayed their versatility by featuring songs with driving rhythms and heavy instrumentals, while also featuring slower songs with much softer instrumentation. Many of the songs highlighted the abilities of their guitarists and drummers with complex instrumentals, but The Fray also showed another side of the band with “Be Still,” a song using modest piano and violin as a simple yet beautiful backdrop for the powerful lyrics of the song. The band not only showed their versatility between the songs of the album, but also within their songs. Songs like “I Can Barely Say” captured the bands ability L-- sacrifices that the country stands on. The album flip-flops between traditional country instrumentation to a heavier electric guitar, which adds a new dimension to the album. The instrumentation and Bentley interact perfectly, the guitar, drums, and violin push the song forward, while Bentley’s voice is more mellow, giving the album a sense of calm excitement. The album is well- balanced, with symmetry between carefree and meaningful lyrics. Overall, the album has a laid-back rhythm that is easy to listen to. However, some parts of the album seem to drag, and it is difficult to become engaged beyond just toe-tapping with the music. Home is a strong performance from country artist Dierks Bentley that excellently showcases his strong vocal abilities. 3.5/5 stars
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics Student Newspaper
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 1, 2012, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75