beggars caravan - if the sky is falling

Beggars' Caravan 

If The Sky Is Falling
self-released; 2013

3.5 out of 5

By Demeria Harris

If the Sky Is Falling is Beggars' Caravan’s second release, but you would think it was the band’s fifth or sixth studio album. A phrase that instantly springs to mind when describing this album is ‘comfortably creative’ – that magical moment when a band gets into their sweet spot as far as their own special sound, but is unafraid to experiment with new ideas. 

Everything here was written with a nice touch of bluesy groove, a theme that weaves itself firmly into every fabric of the album. It’s a simple collection of songs at the root – there are no fancy electronic or dubbed sound effects to be found. Rather, the band relies on trusted and true techniques to share their sound:  unbridled guitar licks, drums that offer enough variety to keep the foundation beat interesting, a solid supporting bass line and reflective vocals.

Some of the songs really stood out from the others. “How Long” and “Maid To Love You” are two songs in particular that captured my attention because the guitarist chooses to take creative liberties with the main riff all throughout the song instead of waiting for the bridge or solo to show out. 

“Prisoner” had some really beautiful instrumental parts complemented by powerfully written lyrics. It sounded like a love song at first but I quickly realized there was a deeper meaning behind it, which increased my appreciation of the song as a whole. On the other end of the scale, “Rain On You” was energetic and fun, and was a nice change of pace from the slower songs that dominated most of the first half of the album. 

There’s some really great songwriting here, with soothing melodies, and no doubt every part plays their instrument (or sings) well. I did notice that the central idea of a song continued along many, making them some of them sound very much alike. This is a good thing in a lot of ways, because if you enjoy the way it sounds you’ll want to hear more of it; but those who like a lot of variety are cautioned to find the subtler nuances here before waving off certain parts of the album. Believe me, there are enough there to keep your interest. 

At the end of the day, this was a nice album to listen to and, as promised, did take me to a different part of myself that isn’t always tapped into. The melodies were so soothing but clear and deliberately written. I can only anticipate what wonderful things will be coming from this band in the future. Give it a listen – it could be just what you needed, without you even knowing you needed it.

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