Word: albums
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...seen as a kind of cautionary tale. The singer-songwriter may not be cut out for rock ballads, and her voice does not integrate well with overeager electronics and heavy drumbeats. But she has her vocal powers and lyrical allure of years past and this album reminds us that she can still persuade listeners to come away with...
...Clouds of sulfur in the air / Bombs are falling everywhere / It’s heartbreak warfare,” sings John Mayer on “Heartbreak Warfare,” the opener on his fourth studio album, “Battle Studies.” With dark lyrics that may at first seem unsettling to those accustomed to Mayer’s usually relaxed tone, violent imagery is quite pervasive on “Battle Studies,” signaling a new direction for the popular singer-songwriter. On earlier releases, Mayer sounds confused but contented, extolling the virtues...
...previous efforts. While Mayer has always touched heavily upon heartbreak in his songs, “Battle Studies” arrives on the heels of a very public romance with Jennifer Aniston and a raised celebrity profile. He implements a much more pensive, gloomy tone on this album, aiming to speak from the heart rather than the tabloids. Instead of father-daughter relationships and inescapable forces of nature, he sings of bombs, killers, and arson, all of which serve as metaphors for his lovelorn misadventures...
Musically, the album does not break a tremendous amount of new ground, but rather smoothes and refines the sound Mayer has developed over the past few years. The eleven tracks strike a pleasing balance between the acoustic pop of “Room for Squares” and the electric blues-rock throwback of 2006’s “Continuum.” The gorgeous “All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye,” with its simple guitar strumming, melancholy strings, and stunning vocal harmonies, is the album’s clear standout, sounding...
...Battle Studies” proves that Mayer has left behind the heartthrob crooning of “Your Body is a Wonderland.” His new album tackles far more serious, personal issues, and as aresult, he has produced some of the best tracks of his career. Ultimately, the tone behind Mayer’s songwriting can be summed up by a lyric on the first single, “Who Says,” on which he sings, “I can’t remember / You looking any better / But then again I don?...