Political artists are hard to find these days, especially those with poignant messages. Earl J. Rivard, III has something to say on Underground Railroad. Making a huge statement right off the bat, the record begins with a warning preamble before the title track. A beautiful Spanish dirge sweeps the audience up into reverence for the broken families between the United States and Mexico. After drawing in your ear so sweetly the song changes to in your face English rock, with heart-breaking verse at the brink of shouting “The time has come to say it loud, we have lost our f*cking minds.” The song and album Underground Railroad is about the need of a new secret safe house network as for slaves during civil war, only this time the slaves are the immigrant sweatshop workers of Mexico, notably the millions of mothers separated from their children. No matter one’s political stance, the situations described by the Rivards are undeniable, real and a perspective urgently needed amidst our “democratic” social media.
The collaborative work of a father and son team, both immaculate songwriters, Rivard, Jr. & III have created some very powerful fusions of multi-music genre styles that span the American continents with a dash of classical European influence. The band members are all technically impeccable musicians. To play such a wide range of music is indeed quite difficult and commendable. However, it is hard to select a place to fit Earl into.
The voice of Earl J. Rivard III is complex, versatile and capable of singing many genres. Usually this is a very positive thing, but with so many different styles of song, it often feels as though Earl is still searching for his niche. It is difficult to compare his voice to any other, as it seems to jump depending on the song. Sometimes our ears are in the care of a tender Spanish balladeer, yet other times pop-rock ferocity overpowers the band. “Till I Met You”, for example, sounds like an epic sort of Elton John piano and all, soft yet strong and confident, riffing similarly. Whereas the very next song, “Coldest Place”, sounds like the lounge of Vegas meets country music. The overwhelming voice of Rivard is sometimes reminiscent of Tool frontman Maynard Keenan in its power. The problem in Rivard’s vocals, however, is his tendency to scoop up to notes, making performances not nearly as solid, with harsh emphasis on English vowels. His Spanish is so soft and romantic; one wants more for these moments than the shouting “Loud and Strong.” It would sound far better if extreme English proclamations were treated with the same calm clear resolute tones as the Spanish lamentations, instead of being so intense.
“Lady, Sweet Lady” is a sweet carol in disguise as a ballad, if not part elegy, for a troubadour parting ways with a loved one. The tune is “Greensleeves”, best known to the Western world as the Christmas carol “What Child is this?”. Compared to the rest of the album, this song is like a rose in a field of wild flowers; beautiful yet out of place and sometimes a bit prickly. The arrangement could have 4-6 melodies as with a choir, but has a nice simplicity to it.
This production, album, band, and lyrics would have warranted a perfect rating, but it is the strange genre flipping vocals of Rivard that hurts them the most. His tone is too serious, even classical to the point of trading some of the soul for power. Still, Rivard has great potential as a singer if only he will find a comfortable genre and treat his English dynamics as he does his Spanish.
Underground Railroad as an album is brilliant. Is it unfortunate, then, that the strength of it is in the band, not in Rivard as a solo artist.
Review by Julian Gorman
