Brandon Caulfield - "Into The Wild - Part II"
Review by Chaos Mag OnlineIsn’t it weird how one word can change the course of a man’s career? Last week, Brandon Caulfield only really had to impress the general alt/rock and country scene (as well as the growing legion of his own fans of course). However, his simple “yes” to becoming frontman of legendary rock band the Bards, will see the follow up to “Into The Wild Part I” go under the microscope of intense scrutiny from all corners of the industry.
Thankfully, “…Part II” is a sublime record, which will instantly allay any fears Bards fans may have about this relative newcomer fronting their favourites for years to come.
From the moody, dark opening of “Patience and Grace”, an ode to his far distant wife, it’s sultry guitar work leading on beautifully from where the previous album left off, to the moment a lone piano laments the loss of Brandon’s close friend Isabel in “A Whiskey and a Smile (Hides My Sorrow for a While)”, the listener is invited to enter into the very emotions of this deep and meaningful artist. And what a journey it takes us on.
Throughout the album, we migrate from Caulfield missing his wife, to the tribulations of young (and sometimes ill advised) love, through loneliness, sadness and even the politics of war (“Fighting for a System Built to Fail”). The brilliance of it all though, is that he somehow makes sure that even with such a range of topics, it never feels contrived.
By now, we have come to expect the dulcet tones and acoustic guitar that have become Caulfield signatures, so it comes as a pleasant surprise to hear the man break out a couple of rockier tunes later on in the album. A personal highlight comes in the form of penultimate track “What Side are you on?”, in which Caulfield lets loose with electric guitar (surely a collectors item moment) and speaks through pure volume rather than intricate words for once. The song is raw, it has energy and a punch, and above all, is fun. And what better way to show Bards fans that he can, without doubt, be the front man they want to see. Right?
That’s not to say that the tried and tested method is one that Caulfield should shy away from though. It is his unique ability to place a quiet ease over his listeners which makes Brandon a stand out in an industry where too many are happy to churn out generic song after song. In fact, in “If I Said I Loved You Would You Hold it Against Me” he even manages to turn the cheesy lyrics of what could have been yet another pop song into a potential ballad for the ages.
All in all, this album is one with the capacity to shape a career. Whilst “…Part I” showed what Brandon Caulfield could do, “…Part II” shows, more importantly, who Brandon Caulfield IS. This cacophony of emotion and truth will be one which becomes a mainstay in your CD collection for many years to come.
In the future, it would be wonderful to hear what he can do if he really let go and just went all out with his raw emotion such as in his rockier efforts here. But that’s another tale, for another album, and another age of Brandon Caulfield. For now, who can complain about this album? Not me.
9.5/10