Why So Blu?

3 Bands, 3 Albums in 2018

Usually when any of my four favorite bands release a new studio album, I get a little excited. When three of the four release new albums in the same year, I climb to the roof and do repeated backflips off the chimney. Such was the case this year as Dave Matthews Band, Daughtry and Imagine Dragons all gave the public something new to rock to in 2018. Since my biggest regret was not addressing each release individually as they occurred, you now get them bundled and gift-wrapped in this neat little article. Please hold the applause until later. We’ve got some music to talk about!

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It started on June 5th when what has been my favorite band since I first entered college released their ninth studio album titled Come Tomorrow.  Dave Matthews Band has weathered many a storm since forming in 1991 and the past year and a half was no exception as original band member and violinist Boyd Tinsley left the group.  Amid sexual harassment allegations, and according to Dave Matthews himself with Tinsley being generally detached and disinterested from the creative process, the long time violinist bowed out of the spotlight.

DMB has always been unique in their sound.  From Dave’s vocals to the sounds of a sax and a violin intertwined in a rock vibe, it was going to be a curious listen when Come Tomorrow made it known there would be no violin.  It’s like having a football team say they’re still going to play football, but they eliminated the kicker position.  How does that even work?  Well, they’re DMB.  They made it work.  Granted, #41 lacks a lot in concert with the subtraction of Boyd, but the band’s latest album was a big success nonetheless.

Come Tomorrow features 14 tracks and a runtime just five minutes shy of an hour.  It’s arguably their most chill album of any DMB studio release to date.  You won’t find a relative of a mind-blowing jam-out like Two Step on here, but that’s okay.  Bands evolve.  The original members have families, their kids are getting older, and as a result, perspectives change which is reflected in the songwriting here.  It’s not an album you can dance to, but I’m fine relaxing on a hammock under an afternoon sun to Virginia in the Rain.  Come Tomorrow has a lot to offer as I’d rank it somewhere in the middle of all of DMB’s studio records.

Come Tomorrow: 

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Almost two months later, Daughtry released their fifth studio album in late July with Cage to Rattle.  Overall, the album was a fair effort, nothing cartwheel-worthy in the grand scheme of things.  We were, however, introduced to a new sound from the band on the album’s second track, Backbone.  There’s a haunting, almost elder Johnny Cash-like beat that starts the tune giving way to a heart-pounding release which is a little adrenaline inducing if nothing else.  Hands down, it’s the best song of the ten that fill out the album’s roster.

My biggest complaint with Cage to Rattle is its length.  It’s a couple songs over a half hour, chiming in at 38 minutes.  I felt a little shortchanged on the limited amount of music the recording has to offer.  There’s no question it’s tough to follow up with the impressive work from their previous release, Baptized, but I was hoping for a more go-getter of a feel than this.

Cage to Rattle: 

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The third album of discussion is from none other than Imagine Dragons.  What is a little surprising here is that this is the band’s second studio release in less than 15 months.  Before the words “money grab” pass anyone’s lips, let me put that thought to rest by stating just how much this blows Evolve out of the water.  That was Imagine Dragon’s 2017 release which I was impressed by, but it was certainly outdone by this month’s Origins album.

The deluxe version clocks in at 53 minutes with 14 tracks and features a variety of sounds, impressing upon its listeners that unique audible signature the band has come to be known for.  There’s the mellow Cool Out early in the album, later followed by the eclectic Digital which opens with an acoustic guitar and explodes into a percussive barrage with a bit of a mosh pit aura to it.  Those are just two tracks that exemplify the musical spectrum found on Origins.

Origins:  

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If a year’s albums releases were based on the feast or famine notion, I would definitely say 2018 brought a Thanksgiving-style delivery.  I would expect 2019 to be rather quiet unless Daughtry, DMB or Paramore decide to pull off what Imagine Dragons did and release another album with such close proximity to a previous album (Paramore’s After Laughter came out in May 2017).  Whatever the case is for next year, there is plenty to jam out to for now before I’m ready to absorb the next tsunami of rock ‘n roll.