Western Courier

Issue date: 3/5/08 Section: The Edge

Widespread Panic is one of those bands that has been around for quite a while - since the mid-'80s - and has kept a relatively low profile. The band has slid by just under the radar throughout its entire career, even though it has been able to survive and thrive successfully many, many years doing shows, traveling on tours and releasing a slew of albums.

The group's latest album, "Free Somehow," is just another album to toss on the CD pile, as many rock listeners most likely have never heard of Widespread Panic before.

This is not to say the group is horrible. Widespread Panic's sound is up to quality with virtually any casual, not-quite-famous rock band. The music sounds close to something you would expect it to sound like, and that may be the band's curse. It has no real, resounding, thundering name recognition or song that echoes throughout mainstream culture. It's a mildly successful, yet mediocre, Southern group.

If anything, "Free Somehow" is decent background music. It's something nice to play while one does homework, laundry, sock-folding or what have you. The album itself has a little variety in terms of the pacing of the songs and different beats. Some tracks sound like your run-of-the-mill rock music while others have a hint of Jimmy Buffet style woven in.

On the plus side, the lyrics on all the tracks are not too shabby when audible. They are not poorly written nor do they sound stupid and unintelligible like many mainstream rock bands. Unfortunately, this may be the only dominating factor of the album, and ultimately, how many people listen to a song for its lyrics? The confusion of inherent patriotism with Bruce Springsteen's sarcastic "Born in the U.S.A." is one of the many songs that can provide an answer for this: not many.

The best track on the entire album has to be one entitled "Flicker." Out of all of the 11 songs, this one is the most distinct and enticing to listen to. It has a great percussion opening that really gets the adrenaline pumping and amplifies the anticipation for the edginess that follows suit.

Otherwise, "Free Somehow" by Widespread Panic is nothing notable. It will fall back into obscurity with the rest of the band's CDs - buried, hidden and ignored by more widespread music culture. This is probably why it came out in a week where very few anticipated albums and collections were released.

-Scott Waldyn
courier staff

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