Album: Bright Lights, Red Eyes
Artist: Ruel
Release Date: October 23, 2020
Genre: Pop/R&B
Length: 0:16:34
Label: RCA Records
Producer: M-Phazes/Rory Noble/Spencer Stewart/Simon Hessmann
The perfect vibe album...
The highly anticipated EP release from 17 year old, Ruel. The album is apparently the "most mature you've heard me" as said by Ruel and is coming off a great deal of successful features on other albums, such as Omar Apollo's Apolonio.
The soulful tones exuding from Ruel in the opening track "as long as you care" provide the perfect contrast to the emotional lyrics in the song. The song talks about how he's always traveling as an artist to go to shows, but still wants a loving relationship, despite the distance. The song has a wonderful progression from the opening "I'm sun-dried", to the attack of the drums that come in, the harmonious reverberating bridge all the way to the end of the track, Ruel keeps it interesting throughout.
On the surface, "distance" is a vastly different and uncomplex song when compared to the opening track. Deep within however, there are layers that continue to build. Before you know it, the song is an all-encompassing soundscape that requires every bit of attention to really appreciate all the different sounds within. At first you appreciate the lyrics and the tone of Ruel's voice but soon the entire song is covered with a bass drone and features various things such as piano chords, rain and other fun things your ears will enjoy.
While some spots on the album are predictable, as all music can be, Ruel finds ways to keep the listener engaged throughout. This shows up heavily on "courage". This song features a bridge at the end that would typically go right into the chorus with a punchy beat and more up-tempo instrument style. Ruel however, goes nearly halfway through the final chorus before breaking into an energetic sound. This small thing, this small unpredictable thing, instantly makes the song more exciting to listen to multiple times.
The fifth and final track "up to something" opens up with an extremely raw guitar sound. The sound of the guitarist's hand moving up and down the neck, the fumbles with the strings in a very artistic fashion, all to breathe into percussive snapping, and then finally leading the audience into a dance-like beat. The jungle tones behind the beat make this the perfect closer for the entire EP.
While this is only an EP, Ruel continues to surmount himself as an up-and-coming artist. At only 17, it's amazing to watch his career arc and see where he goes from here. I will definitely review his upcoming album that should come out within the next year. I recommend listening to this album in full as you'll see every side of Ruel and it will give you a perfect representation as to what kind of artist he is, even if he is from Australia (I tease)…
Favorite Songs: "up to something", "as long as you care", "courage"
Least Favorite Songs: "say it over"
Production Quality:
Mix = 9/10
Innovation = 4/10
Songwriting Quality:
Arrangement = 9.5/10
Lyricism = 9.5/10
Instrumentation Quality:
Vocal Timbre = 10/10
Instrumental Timbre = 8/10
Group Chemistry = 7/10
Overall Likability:
My Personal Rating = 7.5/10
Overall Rating: 8.1/10
Any confusion on how the rating is weighted/calculated, please look at my "About" page.
Remember this is all my opinion! Let me know if you agree, disagree or have any comments!