Blue October "Any Man in America"

      When it seemed like they were Approaching Normal, they release a new album that sounds like a brand new catharsis! “Everything (A.M. Limbo)” is the perfect fifty two seconds to introduce a record like this sounding like your therapist is putting one in a trance. The “Feel Again (Stay)” sounds like a brand new band in term of compositions, but the space is much more atmospheric improving the impact of the song.             What a tragic tale of love that may make some pear proud. Justin was transformed into “The Money Tree” by the temptress named success, and now his wife is split in two! She is the caring mother on one side, and the brew that just simmers with resentment and avarice. The recording between Justin and his daughter speaks volumes before the song even starts, and is not just another song about how being a touring musician affects relationships with family and friends, but why he is one; the money is nice, but he does it “For The Love” and so much more. There is a hip-hop influence in this composition, when it comes to percussion anyway, and did I forget the saxophone solo? Yeah, the song is perfect. The intro of the bloopy synth reminds me of prologue from TREOS, and the chorus reminds me of Sixx AM. I can ask are you with me now? but “Drama Everything” is still distinctly Blue October. I get “The Chills” from listening to this song because it reminds me of Goo Goo Dolls, while “The Flight: Lincoln to Minneapolis” is one of the most distinctive of the entries on this album. Those heart-tugging strings accompany conversation between Justin and his wife, and the first verses read like a script from a movie in a hip delivery; after those lines are through the song becomes much darker; causing the flight to be delayed as Justin looks at his “replacement.” This song has a subtle heaviness that cannot be ignored; a mid-tempo metal song with a slow pace that bottles up the intense emotion refusing to explode in the vocal sense, but it is expected.                                                   “Any Man in America” can understand where Furstenfeld is coming from in this song. Especially if they were married to someone who played the bait and switch and now became a money and power hungry ex.  Whether it was the reference to Eminem and his relationship, or the debacle that was Furstenfeld’s divorce and custody battle, the empathy this song demands is unavoidable. There are two sides to every story, but so far it seems like there is a lot to dislike about his ex, and when his daughter said she wanted to stay with him in track three it makes you wonder. Ray C drops excellent verses in one of several songs flirting with Hip hop angst.  It seems like there is always a competition between both vocals and instrumentals; from the dreamy passages to the tempo changes. “You Waited Too Long” to show you appreciate everything, and now the words will pass from the lips. There are nods to U2 in the beginning of the song, while the string/persussion pound partnership is perfect, and who can forget the “smurf-like” backing vocals? That is “The Getting Over Part.” If you haven’t figured out by now, Justin explicitly tells the listener “And you are what my album's about. I might've been gone but I never walked out” as he sings to his ex, while thinking about his daughter on “The Worry List.”