City of Black and White... and maybe some Grey too
Posted May 25, 2009
By Nathan,
While Mat Kearney was an underrated artist when his first CD, Bullet, came out, his singles from then on forward got significant air play (though Kearney still wasn’t high on the totem pole). During that period, and even after Kearney released his patch job of Bullet’s songs and new tunes labeled Nothing Left to Lose, Kearney made a big impact with the title track from both discs. Now after a three years and with a handful of his songs promoting various television ops, Kearney has resurfaced with his third album City of Black and White.
Due to Kearney’s progressive relevance in the mainstream media, it apparently became essential to simplify both his lyrics and his musical direction some. I’ll start with the musical aspect first because it will make the most of an impact of Mat Kearny fans. The City of Black and White’s music is mellower that previous projects, but it doesn’t have much to do with the tempo as much as the chemistry of any given song. The element which made Kearney’s music so distinct and attractive was the rap and sometimes hip hop flavor which he would mix in every other song flawlessly without any simplistic compromise to the beats or the artistry of the music.
His latest effort contains almost nothing of the rap component, and even though Kearney is still a remarkable musician and still gives fans a healthy dose of cutting edge adult contemporary/pop, City of Black and White is less without it. Eliminating the urban factor from the album causes the songs to mesh a little too much especially towards the end of the CD leaving a little verity to be desired.
Still there are a few stand-out tracks and none rank higher than the first single “Closer to Love.” Every facet of the song is finely tuned including the classy piano intro and the catchy upbeat pop chorus. Kearney’s vocals are strong as always, and provide defining roles in songs like “Annie” and the emotion filled “Fire and Rain.” Kearney’s soft handed approach to pop sound makes an inseparable connection to adult contemporary which never really shifts from one style to the other but stays together. The contemporary pop tune “All I have” is very artistic and the guitar driven “Never Be Ready” is similarly good but it lacks a little diversity. Almost every song on the album is at least good, but I was excepting a something more on the title track which ends up being an uneventful ballad with a fine instrumental ending.
Mat Kearney’s occasionally spiritually vague lyrics often left fans reading between the lines, but he made is clear who he was singing for (look back to “Undeniable” or “Girl America”). I was fearful that with more mainstream exposure Kearney’s lyrics would shirt to a more secular position, but even with a slightly more laid back song writing City of Black and White should drop enough hints to make even unbelievers ponder eternal things. However while, Bullet and Nothing Left to Lose peered into aspects considering life closer to the street, City of Black and White is mainly discuss’ relationships and broken people.
Weaved into his songs of heartbreak are a couple clear biblical references and a few tracks which devote themselves to conversation which could go either way. During a case of disaster where Kearney adds an insightful tidbit ‘I guess we’re all one phone call from our knees’ “Closer to Love” suggests turning to God in rough situations (‘Prayin' Lord come through/We're gonna get there soon/Oh it's your light/Oh it's your way/Pull me out of the dark/Just to show me the way.’). Similarly “Annie” includes trouble concerning a girl who has taken the wrong road in life, but the singer eventually realizes that salvation is in the Lord; ‘Tell me there's something we can say/Help me to find a light/Something that's worth living/Theres one love in the morning/Add three days in the grave/Fall back in the evening/Now our lives will change.’ But when “All I have” remarks ‘Every step/Every moment/I’m looking for/All I have/Is yours’ is it an absolute mention to Christ? And how close is the connection between “Fire and Rain’s” message of a prodigal son and the Bible?
Discretion is advised, but unlike some edgy lyrics in Kearney’s previous two works, there are no serious disclaimers in his strong songwriting (Other than “New York to California” implying that the couple is living together with no marital context). However on the melodic side of things while the charm is still there, the aura of diverse and unique music that Mat Kearney used to own is not so prominent. Sure City of Black and White a strong album and should call to more listeners, but the nagging feeling left with older fans will be ‘I wish he would have explored those streets more.'
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