Ben’s Brother – Beta Male Fairytales
March 31, 2008
- Rise
- Beauty Queen **
- Let Me Out **
- Carry On **
- Find Me An Angel
- I Am Who I Am
- Home
- Bad Dream **
- Live
- God By Another Name **
- Harmonica In F (Interlude) **
- Time **
**Clear Favorites
The whole album is very mellow, and I could almost class it as an ‘easy-listening’ but it doesn’t quite fit. The songs all feature a slightly slower beat, and there is emphases on strong musical usage. The singing is put almost as a second thought, much like the way that The Strokes perform their music. The music comes before the singing, but they don’t conflict. There is heavy usage of the piano, which stands out as the major player within most of the tracks. The lyrics are well-written and executed, and anyone can find meaning in them. The singing reminds me a lot of Coldplay or Snow Patrol, as they are a little grainy, and full of emotion.
The whole album has a near-sad feel to it, mainly due to contributions from certain tracks (Bad Dream and I Am Who I Am come to mind). As a result I don’t suggest listening to “Beta Male Fairytales” if you’re in a low, unless you feel like throwing yourself further into despair. It’s not even the lyrics that really do it, but the mood of the songs
One problem I have with the album (which is a problem with many albums of a similar nature) is that I can only listen to it once through before I start to get sick of it. This is not a CD that you can leave on repeat in the background, as it will start to feel very repetitive. Every track does start to feel like every other on the CD as you continue to listen to it. It’s definitely an album where favorites will be picked, and the other tracks skipped for the rest if their existence.
Overall, a very calm, almost sad album with heavy piano use and wonderful lyrics. It’s worth a listen to, even if you only come away with three songs that you like. In the end you’ll love those tracks dearly.
7/10
Categories: Music Reviews
Tagged under: 7/10, Ben's Brother, Coldplay, Maroon 5, Music Reviews, Snow Patrol