Back in 2018 Divide and Conquer reviewed Songs from the Cave by Steve Wright. Wright is back with Folderol which is a ten-song album. Wright explains “This album is entitled Folderol (means nonsense) and it is a song cycle exploring what we as Americans have been going through for the past four-five years. It begins with the harsh realities of our caustic and divided society and moving along a continuum to gradually more positive uplifting songs. It's not so much a political statement album but a bystander taking pictures of what is happening and how people feel.
The album begins with ‘Everything's black and blue” and it has a sort of straightforward rock vibe with elements of Americana. It’s well delivered, catchy and sounds great overall. Up next is the more ambitious “Everybody’s talkin over.” It’s a moody song that plays around with dissonance and in particular synths which give it an otherworldly and alien like quality. The hook feels like a mantra. I immediately enjoyed “Bored in our houses'' which has a Wilco type quality. The vocals in particular sounded great here. “Scatter All” might have the most badass groove on the album. It’s a little darker at first and sounds more festive as it progresses which I thought was unique. “Take no prisoners” is the first ballad of sorts but isn’t exactly straightforward. There’s a unique use of dissonance and also some really cool play between the guitar and synth. It’s very dreamy sounding. “Bend '' rocks but is also off-kilter with some cool surprise like the tremolo infused spaghetti western guitar which sounds like it got infested by tiny robots. The lush and cinematic “I climbed a mountain” has its moments including some spoken word while “Here comes the aliens” is a fun and a slightly silly song. We go into sort of an epic melancholy ballad with “Better Days” while “Come Away: is a warm song that is one of the most catchy on the album. This is a great album. It jumps all over the place but nothing too far in left field which felt out of place. Recommended.
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