Punk icon Alice Bag has released her second solo album and her attitude is still there even if the music is tuned down quite a bit. This release is quite a break from the energy and fury of her O.G. band The Bags. But the music is still good and more importantly, her voice still sounds great all over. Opening anthem “Turn It Up” sounds like downtuned New Wave with keyboards but the message is there: music can save you if you just let it.
“77” picks up the tempo and the attitude. Listening to this, you can understand where Kathleen Hanna got a bit of her influence from. It’s an interesting record but more notable for the lineage and history behind the artist. The horns on “Stranger” are a bit off-putting and very odd, but her vocals work really well here. This is definitely not the type of record I was expecting to hear, but still a decent listen nevertheless.
“Shame Game” is more of a pop song and so is the title track. If anyone was expecting a rehash of The Bags, they may be a bit letdown. Aside from “Adrift,” the last half of the record is quite disappointing. But “Adrift” is a beautiful piano-led ballad that allows Alice to really showcase her dynamic voice and allow all of herself to come through. It’s one of the more beautiful songs I’ve heard all year and a real standout.
While there’s still a lot of punk attitude and different sorts of instrumentation all throughout the disc, it comes across a bit too singer-songwriter for its own good. But this is still an admirable disc from such an icon and legend.