Hailing out of Baton Rouge, La., the six-man band known as the Benjy Davis Project released their fourth studio album Lost Souls Like Us today. Despite the album’s title, in no part do the lyrics seem to match up with this idea.
But perhaps their overall work on the album explains more because the band seems a bit astray. While they claim to be a band of differing styles and genres, in reality they seem rather lost on how to fuse them together.
The album begins with the track “Mississippi,” a fairly mainstream sound reminiscent of modern country. All it lacks to be on CMT is to turn the twang up. The following two tracks accomplish just about the same goal.
Later, the band turns to their pop sensibilities with their first single, “Stay With Me.” The song rips open with a reverbing guitar before drifting into a mandolin-driven song about maintaining a relationship.
This track represents Benjy Davis’ style of songwriting. Davis chooses to delve straight into the lyrics with little poetic imagination. Lost Souls Like Us contains lyrics that are less than captivating, but on “Stay With Me,” this technique works effectively.
For example, Davis writes, “Might be bipolar but it’s changing seasons / Stay here with me / Don’t wanna be a part of your past / I know I wasn’t your first kiss but I want to be your last.” These words work on a conversational and emotional level.
On the other hand, on “Get High,” the second track with a modern country vibe he speaks about having a good time: “We need to get a little beer in us / We need to pull up a chair / Sit it on down / Pass it around / Everybody knows we’re going nowhere.” With these lyrics, the band really isn’t going anywhere.
Fans looking for a repeat to the BDP hit “Do It With The Lights On” will enjoy the track “Send Your Love Down.” With its suggestive lyrics, it seems Davis saves his best writing for songs about sex.
Many themes covered throughout this album have been covered sufficiently in pop music: love lost, having a good time, constantly moving. But those that are original lack the depth and logic of turning them into solid songs.
One track that clearly sounds like nothing else on the album is “Bite My Tongue.” It succeeds in originality with the piano melody of another time period, nearly reminiscent of a nursery rhyme beat. Davis talks about the temptation of holding back his words in heated moments. However, in actuality, people typically hold back and are tempted to speak freely.
Regardless of what Davis writes, he sings it with authenticity and talent.
One of the admirable parts of the sound that Benjy Davis Project creates is Davis’s ability to fluctuate his vocals. Sometimes it has a deep and husky sound for a more hard rock feel, and occasionally it turns soft on songs with more pop to them.
Toward the end of album, a harder rock style surfaces. Marked by a steady beat and shrilling guitar, “Iron Chair” blisters through about being with a girl who’s only known trouble.
“Light of Other Days” is very similar in is rock stylings, but what’s really impressive is its fusion with pop. Unlike the rest of the album, Davis finally pens an arrangement that mixes two basic genres in one song. The verses move forward with a pulsing, electric guitar and the chorus melts slowly into sweet pop.
But the main trouble with Lost Souls Like Us is that there are no risks or chances taken. Perhaps Benjy Davis Project has gotten comfortable with its sound, but the tracks here are safe with rather repetitive structures.
If the band doesn’t start to move forward musically, they’ll remain lost.
(**) out of (*****)