The Reckoning

Well, the new Needtobreathe album is out. Since I got really into them last Fall, I was extremely excited for it. I've listened through it five times so far and have enough of an informed opinion to write about it. So, how did they do?

What I really enjoyed about The Outsiders was the raw, earthy feel of the whole thing--the abundance of stomping, clapping, shouting, and banjo that gave it a down-to-earth quality not found in many other more polished, "ordinary" rock bands. The Reckoning sees them explore this familiar style further, with songs ranging from anthemic to intimate to downright funky. At every turn they prove themselves adept at their blend of electric and acoustic guitars, piano, banjo, organ, harmonica, mandolin, and of course Bear Rinehart's distinctive vocals. At the same time they expand their lyrical subject matter, though I'm not sure how necessary this was.

On the one hand The Reckoning has some of Needtobreathe's biggest songs yet. "Keep Your Eyes Open" layers electric guitar and bass riffing over a swirling piano melody, with the rest of the band adding to Bear's vocals for even more punch. The transition from the quiet bridge to the truly fist-pumping final chorus is almost hair-raising. But the third track "Drive All Night" outdoes even this. It has no relation to the Bruce Springsteen song of the same name, but seems more like The Boss' style than his own song. The entire band absolutely gives it their all on this song: the drums stomp and crash, the guitars evoke the beauty and power of classic rock, and Bear just sings his heart out, becoming increasingly impassioned as the song goes on. The soul this song has is absolutely amazing; it's definitely the standout of the album.

The drums on this album are more prominent and varied than on their previous ones, doing plenty of interesting stuff in the vein of "Through Smoke". The distant, booming drums on "The Reckoning" recall this; combined with the lyrics about "the middle of our reckoning time" and piano melody it's quite epic. The plodding rhythm, accented with cymbals, on "White Fences" works well with the beautiful-sounding guitar chords and piano. (Not sure how exactly it couldn't) The eccentric rhythm, minor-key guitars, and paranoid lyrics on "Maybe They're On To Us" sound like they could belong in a spy film. Steady bass stomping starts off "Slumber" and continues accompanied by a knotty acoustic guitar riff; in the end the song goes for grandeur as in "Keep Your Eyes Open".

As I mentioned above, the lyrics on The Reckoning are even more diverse than on The Outsiders. The band's Christian faith is even more under-the-surface this time, with the Biblical allusions and metaphors out of plain sight. Quite a few more lyrics about love this time around as well. They're certainly still good (lines like "Never run away a boy/When you can walk away a man" on "The Reckoning"), but overall I miss the themes of The Outsiders.

The Reckoning sees Needtobreathe go in all manner of new musical directions, many of them pleasant. Similarly they boldly explore new lyrical territory. Unfortunately their experimentation had mixed results, with some real standout tracks and some (in my oipnion) duds. Maybe I'm just spoiled after The Heat and The Outsiders, on which nearly every song was amazing and memorable, or maybe this one just needs more time (unintentional reference) to grow on me. The album is a big step forward for the band, but it's a shaky one and I feel like they've lost some of what made their previous albums so memorable. Let's hope it's not gone forever.