8.0
I am a sucker for RKS. I’m going to go ahead and spit that out now. I also know this album came out last year, but I was set on doing a Rainbow Kitten Surprise Bones album review and I’m stubborn.
So, when I pushed play on “Friendly Fire,” I came in biased. No lie. But, I did try to listen with a clean palette. Honestly, though, you hear that dreamy rhythm guitar and these beautiful lyrics? Ace! Top lyric that moved me: “Baby blue, tell me, does it come in pink?” I get you, baby.
“Hell Nah” comes in with the guitar filter and I am instantly hooked. This pre-chorus buildup is sweet. And that devil and daddy imagery we know RKS is good for, ahh! I love this. Drumming does not disappoint in this song.
“bones” gives us more of an edge, with a rock sound in the chorus, courtesy of some hi hats and electric guitars. It’s a nice break up to the feel of the album. This song definitely has some drug references, but, hey, it’s rock and roll at this point.
“100 Summers” is the nostalgic song we all needed to show up here. Cue a throw back to an Atari. Less chords here, more arpeggios in the verses. It works. The vocoder bridge at the end makes you feel more emotional as if you weren’t already in the depths.
“Murder” is the unrequited love song that falls right in line with the rest of the songs; a theme of summer longer is evident here. Note the role keys/piano plays in this song. These lyrics are highly relatable. I mean, “Shit I got you, shit you got me, should I have left? Will you still leave? Do you even wanna talk anymore?” Feel me?
“Dang”–ooh the beginning of this chorus will snap your heart into submission. It starts out stripped down and grabs your attention pretty quick. I love the rhythmic kind of staccato-like feel to this. The lyric “I’ve been working on a project, it’s called you” pretty much sums up my life. Holla back in the comments if you are on this train. Standout song here.
“King” has a beautiful piano line in the background of the verses. This song has a quintessential Rainbow Kitten Surprise sound. It literally sounds like all of their other songs! Good news if you like that sound. Poor news if you are in the middle of this album, I suppose.
“Stars”–oh keys again!! Okay! The chords are beautiful here. The down strums of the guitar in the chorus drive the blunt lyrics forward. “And it comes in every shape and size/Do your eyes align with mine?”
“Texas Hold ‘Em” starts off with a soft, beautiful feel. The background vocals in the chorus are layered to give a nice plush feel. The padding adds to this. It’s almost soothing? It is as if we feel uncertainty in the song, but we can trust in the music.
“Tropics” ends this album on a high note. That “tin-ny” snare and that dark electric guitar that comes in on the chorus truly brings in the chokehold, friends. The vocals, the deep lyrics (I worship, you’re my temple/And Heaven, hold your gates open/All the hell we’ve been through/Loving you is sinful). Ugh. So beautiful. The cadence is beautiful. I really just want to drown in this song. This is the second standout song of this album.
Overall, Bones has me in chokehold and I am not sorry. The lyrics in this album are amazing and pure poetry. Kudos to RKS for this work of art. From the instrumentation to the solid lyrics, this is great. This album could run the risk of being boring at times, as many of the songs sound the same, but if you love the band, you will love this album. Solid 8. I love the band, so the depth of the lyrics had me in a chokehold.
What do you think? Do you agree with this Rainbow Kitten Surprise Bones album review? Why or why not? Let me know!
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