Everyone needs to grow up eventually — even rock stars. But when you’re the members of a band named Barenaked Ladies, switching to a more serious and mature sound might not be the best career move.
Hugely popular in the late ’90s and early ’00s, Barenaked Ladies made a name for itself as a witty, irreverent and snarky alternative rock band with songs like “If I Had $1000000,” “One Week” and “Pinch Me.” The last two are notable for the combination of fast-paced rap with a traditional chorus and verse structure that set Barenaked Ladies apart from their contemporaries.
Unfortunately, there’s almost none of this trademark sound in their latest release, “All in Good Time,” and, as such, there’s not much room left for Barenaked Ladies to stand out from the crowd.
To be fair, Barenaked Ladies isn’t the same band it used to be. The lineup’s been drastically altered due to the departure of founding member Steven Page, who shared vocals and songwriting duties with current lead singer/songwriter Ed Robertson.
The shift in the band’s tone is obvious with its opening track, lead single “You Run Away,” inspired by their split with Page. Opening with a slow, melodic keyboard progression, “You Run Away” is a restrained, reflective response to Page’s decision.
It’s a good song — maybe even as good as some of Barenaked Ladies’ previous singles — but it’s the polar opposite of what you’d expect from a band whose previous hits have referenced “Chickity China the Chinese chicken” and include lines that force singers to say “underwear.”
It’s only a hint of what’s to come. “You Run Away” is followed by “Summertime,” a groovy ode to summer, and “Another Heartbreak,” a ballad about as deep as it sounds. They’re okay songs, in and of themselves, but when the name “Barenaked Ladies” is attached, it feels like we’re getting cheated.
The album’s fourth track, “Four Seconds,” is a breath of fresh air, a folksy song that reintroduces the rap-infused style you’d expect from Barenaked Ladies. The folk elements sound odd, but it’s old-school Barenaked Ladies at its core: clever, slick and full of twisting wordplay.
Unfortunately, there’s nothing else like this on the album. After “Four Seconds,” the majority of the CD consists of pensive, thought-heavy songs that bring us closer to the matured, serious sound “You Run Away” and the rest of the album seems designed to produce.
The album’s not all thought, but much of the rest is just further response to Page’s departure, with songs like “I Have Learned” and “Golden Boy” offering an edgier reply than we get from “You Run Away.” The songs are a welcome change from the rest of the album, but aren’t especially good in their own right.
That said, there are some standouts from the second half. In “Every Subway Car,” for example, Robertson sings of a graffiti artist tagging his love’s name across the city, and “How Long” gives us a glimpse into a heated argument between a couple. Both are well-constructed, and seem like a more natural evolution of Barenaked Ladies’ sound than the remainder of the album.
If this was a debut album, it’d be fantastic. And in a way, it is — it’s the debut of the new, retooled Barenaked Ladies.
However, if you’re looking for the Barenaked Ladies you remember from “One Week” and “Pinch Me,” I wouldn’t hold your breath. I’m not sure if it’s caused by Page’s departure or just in response to Page’s departure, but Barenaked Ladies is actively working to mature its musical style, and “All in Good Time” seems to be the group’s first steps forward as a new creative entity.
But if I had “$1000000” to bet on whether they’ll be as good as the now-classic Barenaked Ladies, I think I’d invest it on that tree fort in my yard instead.
