This review covers the alternative rock track The Tragically Hip – Bobcaygeon.
This track was released in 1998 on the album Phantom Power.
The track starts off with a guitar. A high hat joins the track along with a bass guitar. The vocals then join the track right after for a verse.
As the vocals progress, they seem to slip into a main chorus. This is capped off with an instrumental section.
From there, the vocals lead the track into the next verse. They then slip into the main chorus again. this is capped off with another instrumental section. A few additional sliding notes are used here.
After that, the vocals take the track into the next verse. They then, once again, slip into the main chorus. Again, this is capped off with an instrumental section. This time around, however, there is an added organ introduced into the track. The track then breaks down for a bit before the guitars lead the track out.
One of the things I personally look for when finding good music is something interesting. Sometimes, it’s what makes the track exciting, emotional, or even just plain unique. Having listened to this a couple of times, I think I was able to drill down a faint point of interest. Some of those sliding notes on the guitar do work and make this track interesting. The thing is, country music uses this so much, I can’t really say it is any major point of interest.
Some might point out that there is the organ towards the end. The problem with that is, although it adds variety to the track, it gets almost drowned out by other mediocre elements. Although it is present, it is also missable too.
Another problem with this track is the mastering. At some parts, the vocals become less then comprehensible because other elements are simply getting in the way. So, I personally miss a lot of what the lyrics are trying to say and lose a fair bit of any meaning that might be there.
Additionally, there are some transitions that simply don’t exist. It can be hard to tell whether or not you are in a verse or chorus because the track just seems to melt from one into the other. To me, the effect is that this track seems to meander without much thought put into it. As a result, I find myself tuning out pretty quickly.
The only positive I see in this track is that there is some interesting chilled out undertones throughout the track. So, if you want a random track that is just chilled out to the point of being relaxation music, this might do the trick if you aren’t into straight up ambient music.
Overall, this track winds up being fairly bland in the end. The transition and the mastering leave a bit to be desired. There’s nothing really here that makes this an exciting or intriguing track that I could tell. While it may be an interesting track to use as a random relaxation track, I can’t find myself really enjoying this one. If you missed listening to this track, you wouldn’t be missing much.
Score
6/10
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.
