The Green – Self Titled
Track Listing:
1.) What Will Be Will Be
2.) Love I
3.) Never
4.) Runaway Train
5.) Alone
6.) Dearest Sylvia
7.) Wake Up
8.) Alive
9.) How Does It Feel Feat. Kimie
10.) Love Machine
11.) I’m Yours
12.) Trod The Hard Road
13.) Rootsie Roots
The Pier Album Rating:
Record Label: SHD Records
Group Background:
Formed in Oahu, Hawaii, in 2009, The Green began as a group of friends making music for the love of music. Their debut album, The Green, debuted at number 3 on the Billboard Reggae Charts in February of 2010 and remained in the top ten for 25 straight weeks. The band is now touring from coast to coast alongside Iration and The Movement.
Album Review:
What Will Be Will Be, the first track on The Green’s self-titled debut album, begins with a shout, Can you hear The Green coming? Truth be told, your ears must be nailed shut if you can’t hear what The Green have to offer to the future of reggae music. The band’s self-titled debut is a brilliantly constructed gem of modern reggae music, combining heavy drum and bass with smooth vocal melodies and enchanting lyricism.
What Will Be Will Be continues with singer/guitarist Zion Thompson’s detailed narration of scenes from a utopian lifestyle on a tropical island, passing the chalice and living irie amongst the natural world. The song’s celebration of simple living exemplifies the band’s talent for crafting lyrically fitting song arrangements, hanging tight to a sweet reggae groove until the band hits a breezy synth-driven breakdown, complete with swirling echo and lush vocal harmonies.
Like most reggae albums, The Green touches upon a variety of song topics, ranging from love to social consciousness. Although sometimes the love songs can border on corny (particularly Love I), others, such as Dearest Sylvia, provide fantastic platforms for The Green to show off their four part vocal harmonies. How Does It Feel, featuring guest vocals by Kimie, juxtaposes her tender, pained croon squarely with the rough-hewn male voices of The Green, as the two lament the pangs of lost love over delicate acoustic instrumentation.
Various tracks also expand upon the band’s musical vocabulary by rather tastefully incorporating synthesizer and electronic elements a la Beres Hammond into the mix. Alone and Wake Up allow the band to utilize electronics for brief flourishes and a light layering of electronic undertones, while Love Machine takes a turn towards the 80’s with an uptempo dance-floor groove complete with rising synth strings wafting over round, synth bass.
The real brilliance of The Green, however, cannot be captured simply through flowery descriptions of individual tracks from the album because, truth is, this album isn’t really just a collection of funky, reggae tunes, but, in many ways, an album which encapsulates the positivism, the beauty, and the spirit of reggae music in every track. Each song buries the listener deeper within The Green’s unique interpretation of modern reggae music, be it the funk of Love Machine or head-in-the-clouds, wistful rocksteady of Alive. The band stays faithful to the sound of classic reggae music, while still injecting enough of their personal Hawaiian flavor to create an album that sounds unique and individual.
Written & Reviewed by:
Chris Castro
[Editors Note: All reviews are reflective of the album in it’s entirety, from start to finish. These reviews are the honest opinion of each writer/reviewer, expressing their feedback as a genuine fan of the music. Each star rating reflects their review of the album, not the band. Music is subjective. Regardless of the review or star rating, we encourage you to listen to the music yourself & form your own opinion. Spread the awareness of all music in its art & contribution]
