Reviews

John Ralston

Needle Bed

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Review Date: 2006-08-20

Life is full of possibilities; ask John Ralston about it. That’s what he proves to us with the making of Needle Bed, his first ever studio album. This copy I got of John Ralston’s debut album is a self-released one that he put out in April 2005. Here is a little bit of the story behind it.

Taken from his website: “A chance conversation at a Lake Worth restaurant brought Ralston in contact with Michael Seaman, a recording engineer with a studio in his historic Knoxville, Tennessee, home. Seaman (who would later introduce the singer to his uncle, Marc Ward, owner of Elegbaland) and Ralston had an instant rapport. Last summer, the engineer invited Ralston to Knoxville to hang out, maybe record some tunes.” Ralston later signed a contract with Vagrant Records, which offers him a world full of possibilities again.

Ralston loves to write music; he says he has written somewhere around 200 songs since Needle Bed came out. He also says he thinks of writing songs 90% of the time, which can never be bad for someone who would possibly like to make music a living. This devotion definitely pays, as the songs recorded on the album are not made by a beginner, and that shows.

The music here is most likely to appeal to fans of singer/songwriters in general. Suicide is the main theme of this album, reminding listeners of an interesting amount of folk legends. There is always that depressive theme coming from Needle Bed, but on the other hand, there’s a time where Ralston takes life as it is – “It’s just life and it’s spinning round.”

The song themes are quite depressing, but the guitar pop that Ralston creates always is catchier than the lyrics would indicate. There are at least five songs on this that I could very well see playing on the radio. Complexity is never Ralston’s trademark; his songs are always kept simple and easy to listen to. Even though the lyrics are sometimes negative, they usually leave you on a hopeful note.

Imagine Bright Eyes going on a power-pop spree and you would have an excellent idea of what’s going on here. Songs like “Gone, Gone, Gone” remind me of Goo Goo Dolls, and they will probably do well too, as they’re very radio-friendly as well as being very efficient.

The only thing that left me hungry about this album is the short length of 31 minutes, which shows in the score. But even then, it’s a good album, and I’m glad I got it. Ralston has been supporting Dashboard Confessional (also on Vagrant) lately on a US tour, and it has probably helped him become better known, which is a really good thing.

Songs to hear: “It's Not Your Fault,” “When We Are Cats,” “No One Said It Was Easy,” “Gone, Gone, Gone,” “Avalanche”

Score: 7.8

- Alexandre Poulin