Stephen
BEGGARS & THIEVES came up with a new album for the first time in 12 years and while I'm not really excited about this, I'm interested to give this a shot since there are quite a few out there that rated this very high. Sadly I don't know what did they hear because after two full spins, I think this one's pretty bland and passable. The first single, 'We Come Undone', is pretty nice, but 'Oil & Water' and 'Innocence' are couple of painfully weak tracks.
They play lots of midtempo hard rock stuffs, throw in some dark elements to generate a gloomy atmosphere, but the song composition is mostly a flop. 'Seven Seconds' and 'Midnight Blue' might be the weakest of the bunch, but I can't see myself enjoying songs like 'Never Gonna See You Again' or 'Beautiful Losers'. 'Stranded' might be a good acoustical rock effort, but that track alone can't save the whole second half that's crumbling down to the end.
The production is somehow great, it's just that this album is overflown with fillers and average tunes. Probably a moody album and I haven't find myself the right mood for this one, but at least based on the first two or three spins, I guess it's around 55%-60% top for me