Review of Kid Rock’s Album “Rebel Soul”

Kid Rock’s music has gone through some drastic changes over the course of his career. He gained notoriety through his unique blend of rap and rock and roll. As his music career progressed, Kid Rock transformed his musical style and began creating songs that fell strictly into the southern rock genre. Kid Rock’s penultimate album “Born Free” heralded yet another shift in his musical style. “Born Free” was a blend southern rock with a healthy dose of country music which helped Kid Rock gain many new fans in the country music market. Rock’s latest album “Rebel Soul” continues this trend of musical reinvention. “Rebel Soul” has a little something for everyone. The album, as a whole, defies being pigeon-holed into a single genre. There are tracks that mimic the country music style of “Born Free” which will appeal to older fans who enjoyed Rock’s previous foray into the country music world, and there are radically different tracks that are influenced by a variety of different musical styles including; The Grateful Dead inspired rock, blues, funk, gospel and even Motown. “Rebel Soul” is a blend of many different genres that will appeal to people with widely varied musical taste.

The opening track of “Rebel Soul”, entitled “Chickens in the Pen”, presents the listener with the eclectic blend of musical genres that will be present throughout the album. The track opens with a thumping bass drum that creates a loping beat as Kid Rock belts out the eponymous lyric, “The mule keeps kickin’ the chickens in the pen”. This bluesy sentiment fits in perfectly with the steady groove of the bass drum, but this old blues feeling is short-lived as an electric guitar thunders in with a classic rock riff. Rock’s vocals are then bolstered by back-up singers who later chime in with a call and response technique during the chorus in a manner befitting Motown music. The rhythm guitar during the song mimics the loping beat with a country twang reminiscent of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s, “Run Through the Jungle”. However, all instruments, except for the ever present bass drum, drop out during the breakdown and Rock’s vocals morph into a style similar to gospel music. When the instruments return, the lead guitar continues to blast classic rock riffs while the rhythm guitar has changed to a funky progression of quickly strummed chords. “Chickens in the Pen”, with its seamless blending of classic and southern rock, blues, gospel, Motown, and funk, serves as an excellent introduction to the eclectic nature of “Rebel Soul”. However, the rest of the tracks on the album do not attempt to encompass as many genres in one song, but rather, they stand alone as examples of one or two of the various individual genres presented in “Chickens in the Pen”.

The second, fifth, and tenth track, respectively entitled “Let’s Ride”, “Rebel Soul”, and “Mr. Rock and Roll”, are driven by a classic rock influence. In reference to “Let’s Ride”, music critic Eric Ogden (2012) notes that, “The tone is decidedly more serious on "Rebel Soul's" first single, a charging, muscular anthem for troops going into battle. Guitars blaze as Rock… paints a stark lyrical picture of what the GIs face in Afghanistan and Iraq” (para. 4). This guitar heavy style is also present on the other two rock inspired tracks, “Rebel Soul” and “Mr. Rock and Roll”. All three rock influenced tracks feature a distorted electric lead guitar that frequently breaks into squealing fast paced solos. The pervasive lead guitar throughout “Rebel Soul” sounds similar to the scorching riffs that Jimmy Page made famous during the 70’s while playing with Led Zeppelin. These three tracks will appeal to people who have an affinity towards rock and roll music, and Rock’s raspy southern vocals will ensure that there is still an air of familiarity for older fans.

The classic and southern rock influence of the three aforementioned tracks is juxtaposed with the bluesy overtones of songs like “3 CATT Boogie” and “Celebrate”, and the gospel influenced tracks “Cocaine and Gin” and “Midnight Ferry”. The rhythm of “3 CATT Boogie” is a standard three chord blues progression and turnaround interspersed with frequent electric blues riffs and accompanied by a honkey-tonk style piano. “Celebrate” follows this bluesy formula but substitutes Rock’s screeching vocals and a more prominent electric guitar in place of the honkey-tonk piano. Unlike the rock and blues influenced tracks of “Rebel Soul”, the last two tracks “Cocaine and Gin” and “Midnight Ferry” finish the album off with a gospel feel. Both tracks are slower paced and place a greater emphasis on Rock’s vocals which are accompanied by a gospel chorus. Rolling Stone reviewer James Hunter (2012) described “Midnight Ferry” as, “a midtempo ballad where Rock vows to ‘carry on my way with, yes, the world’” (para. 2). Both “Midnight Ferry” and “Cocaine and Gin” are about atoning for past sins and this theme fits in nicely with the gospel inspired instrumental and vocal style.

Though “Rebel Soul” contains influences from rock, blues, funk, and gospel, fans that were drawn to Kid Rocks previous album “Born Free”, and its prevailing country music style, will not be let down. There are four tracks that would seem right at home if they were placed in Rock’s previous album. “Detroit, Michigan”, “God Save Rock and Roll”, “Redneck Paradise”, and “Happy New Year” are all heavily influenced by country music and are presented in a style that fans of “Born Free” will find familiar and satisfying. “Redneck Paradise” was even featured on Country Music Television’s “Top 20 Countdown”, but, due to its length of over five minutes, has not received much air time from country music radio stations. For fans of Rock’s last album, “Redneck Paradise” will be an instant hit. Rock’s drawling vocals as he sings about drinking moonshine and partying at his southern home are accompanied by the twang of a steel guitar and country style piano. These elements will likely lead to Kid Rock being one of the musicians likely to stand the test of time. Out of the four tracks that are influenced by country music, “Redneck Paradise” is undoubtedly the track that is most similar to the style of Rock’s previous album. However, all four tracks have a country feel that will appeal to fans that were drawn to Kid Rock because of his album “Born Free”.

“Rebel Soul” is a great album; however, it contains a song that does not live up to the high standard that Kid Rock sets with the other tracks. The track in question is “The Mirror” in which Rock employs the use of auto-tune. Auto-tune is generally used by rap and hip-hop artists, and Rock’s southern drawl just does not mesh well with this vocal distortion. Furthermore, the Spanish style guitar that provides the rhythm for the track does not fit in well with the percussion of the song, which is done by a beat machine rather than a live band. The ill-advised use of auto-tune and a beat machine make this track seem out of place and contrived in an otherwise stellar album. This one dark spot cannot mar the overall effect of “Rebel Soul”. The album is a wonderful blend of several musical genres that can appeal to many people who enjoy varied types of music. There are also enough country influenced tracks to ensure that Kid Rock won’t alienate the country music fan base that he gained through the release of his previous album “Born Free”.

References

Hunter, J. (2012, November 20). Kid Rock Rebel Soul. Rolling Stone. Retrieved fromwww.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/rebel-soul-20121120

Ogden, E. (2012, November 20). Kid Rock, ‘Rebel Soul’: Track-by-track review. Billboard. Retrieved from www.billboard.com/articles/review/1066749/kid-rock-rebel-soul-track-by-track-review