Change can be hard, as I'm sure you're aware, and sometimes the more something needs to change the harder it is. That seems to be the theme of Stray Human, an alternative rock album by singer-songwriter Chris Spirit Brown. Here we have 12 songs, including the instrumental title track, whose lyrics largely revolve around emotional and mental struggles, and the value of finding a new path to walk down.
That is explicitly clear in songs like What Shall We Write?, Reinvent, and Leave That Path Behind, which all have an endearing optimism which contrasts with gloomier tracks like A Dark Place.
Musically, it feels like a who's who of 80s, 90s, and 2000s rock styles, from the riffy headbanging opener Into the Pale Sunrise, to the jangly indie rock guitars or Stray Human, to the raw one-and-one acoustic closer, The End.
I really like The End actually, but to explain why would necessitate going into my biggest nagging criticism of the album. See, Chris is a really good guitar player. It's impressive how many different styles appear on this album and how well they all seem to fit together. I also think the guitars often sound great. Big scuzzy riffs, I love it. But unfortunately what rarely sounds great is Chris' vocals.
There's definitely a quality to the singing style that I appreciate. At times it sounds like he's channelling Morrissey (a singer who I kind of begrudge bringing up given his track record of being awful but I do really love his vocal style), all to often it's the loudest thing in the song and really struggling to stay in tune. There are points where this actually doesn't matter. Into the Pale Sunrise, the most Morrissey-like song, seems pretty well suited to his vocal register, and then A Dark Place has a chorus that almost sounds like Deftones and what may be pitchiness sounds like intentional dissonance.
And then the other time I'm fine with it is the aforementioned The End. This song is acoustic, and I believe recorded in a single take with a single microphone, and it makes me realise that one of the main reasons the vocals are kinda hard to deal with is the mixing. Big, loud, and drenched in reverb, it just amplifies all those problems tenfold. But on The End, they're dry and sit in a more comfortable place next to the acoustic guitar. Sure, the song itself is rough as hell and clips all over the place, but it ends up feeling like a lofi demo that I'd gladly listen to.
It's a bit frustrating because I think Chris is a good songwriter. I didn't get bored during this album because the songs are varied enough and catchy enough to carry it through. The guitar playing is solid throughout, and even though the drums are obviously sequenced, it didn't really distract from anything. So it's just that one issue.
And then there's the core thing - this album is a personal and emotional expression. There's sadness here and a desire to turn things around, and that's the kind of thing that matters most. It's human, and in a world that sometimes feels like it's losing humanity, that carries a lot of value.