Word: rockingly
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...Fall” can be 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...
...Jones denies her voice the limelight. In the process of musical experimentation, she appears to have forgotten her greatest strengths as an artist. In the past, Jones found her home in the sultry intersection of country and jazz, but unfortunately her first forays into the realm of rock meet with varied success on “The Fall,” where at certain points she completely drowns her silken voice in awkwardly abrasive electronic chords...
These pieces are all the more welcome, however, in light of the more uncomfortable tracks on the album. “It’s Gonna Be” sounds like a retrospective attempt at the very worst type of classic rock, including repetitive lyrics, insipid rhymes and lack of chord progression. “If all we talk about is money nothing will be funny, honey,” Jones warbles. Nothing of the singer’s nuanced vocals can be distinguished over the heavy-handed electric undercurrent...
Likewise, the corrosive twangs behind “I Wouldn’t Need You” overpower its vocals. In this particular ill-advised attempt to create a fusion of rock and jazz—platitudes thrown somewhat haphazardly over an oddly insistent and plodding background—Jones incorporates several upsetting and nonsensical chords at the song’s climax...
...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 like...