Jim James – Regions of Light and Sound of God (2013)
Jim James
Regions of Light and Sound of God
ATO Records, 2013
38 minutes
Inspired by Lynd Ward’s 1929 graphic novel, A God’s Man, Jim James explores spiritual themes in his debut solo album. James is best known as the lead vocalist for My Morning Jacket, but Regions of Light and Sound of God is a far cry from the band’s standard sound. Trippy and psychedelic instrumentation mixed with hip hop beats, the Louisville, Kentucky, native delivers an interesting and at times eerie record.
The album starts off strong, but begins to falter by the third track, which sounds forced after the flow of “State of the art (A.E.I.O.U.)” and “Know Til Now.” James rebounds with “A New Life” and the instrumental “Exploding,” which has a very familiar melody. The haunting opening strains of “All Is Forgiven” lead into another strong vocal performance, but the album closer “God’s Love To Deliver” fails to deliver on Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream.
Regions of Light and Sound of God is an inconsistent offering, with a handful of songs that will keep the listener coming back, but a few others that may wear out the skip button on the CD player.
Watch the video for “A New Life” below:
Tracklist:
1. State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.)
2. Know Til Now
3. Dear One
4. A New Life
5. Exploding
6. Of The Mother Again
7. Actress
8. All Is Forgiven
9. God’s Love To Deliver
Posted on February 26, 2013, in music, reviews and tagged ATO Records, Jim James, Regions of Light and Sound of God. Bookmark the permalink. 2 Comments.
Nailed this review… Couldn’t agree more.
I agree! Our band sat down to read this article and agreed wholeheartedly with everything you said. I for one had never heard of Jim James until now, and after hearing “A New Life,” I was instantly hooked. Great work, thanks for posting this.