Review Summary: playing world music on drugs
Rusted Root are pretty obscure, and chances are you've never heard of these guys, except for their most well-known track Send Me On My Way. Whether these guys were on drugs when they were writing and recording this album, I do not know. What I do know is that they all sound like hippies who dance around like morons in their music videos looking like dicks. But that's okay, because the music kicks ass. Rusted Root are unique for their excellent blend of jam rock, world music and bluegrass to create a magnificent experience. I remember well over five years ago when I discovered these guys, how I played Skyrim and was like "wtf is this ***?" But that's what great about these guys, it's music that baffles you a bit, but at the same time you can dance around to their music like they do too.
Primal Scream is an excellent example of what I'm talking about. The song is riddled with mystical music, impressive "tribal" singing (with no particular lyrics sung) and african drumming, but at the same time you can jam that *** like they do just like the next track Send Me On My Way. Throughout most of the album, it seems to be a pattern of alternating between mystical songs, then to more upbeat songs. This is great. Even if the sadder songs doesn't break you completely down, they never break your nice vibe the other songs have built up. For example, the most depressing song (though it gains positive momentum later) Where She Runs is followed up by Martyr, the best and most squirm-worthy song on the album in my opinion. A musical element that were to be developed further on later releases by the band is bluegrass. The traces of it on Cruel Sun are pretty scarce here, being found predominantly in Won't Be Long, which is immediately recognized as one in that vein (it even has Harmonica, guys).
However, the album's excellence doesn't carry on through the entire album. Songs like Artificial Winter and Scattered doesn't capture the same magic like other tracks, falling flat after several listens (70-80 that is). They're not bad by any means, I just tend to lose interest in those song faster than the others. Back to the Earth is another song that is pale in comparison to the greatness of others. It's basically an all out world song slowed down significantly the first half of the song. A reason some of the songs on the second side of the record are generally worse than the first side tend to be the fact that they start to sound a bit too much like the others eventually.
Nevertheless, you owe it to yourself to listen to this album. This album and review will probably go largely unnoticed, but who cares. All I want to accomplish is the positive vibe to live on in others as it has in me <3
