CheekyChicago

As is too often the case these days, Citizen Cope (aka Clarence Greenwood) was signed to a major label and then dropped. And in a (now somewhat familiar) turn of events, Greenwood decided to go the indie route and keep on making music. Hence, he has released The RainWater LP – named after his own label, RainWater Recordings.

In just under 40 minutes, Cope manages to emote in a larger-than-life way, yet his instrumentation is fairly simple. Although classified under the alternative genre, his sound is a mixture of R&B, blues, hip-hop, funk… I could go on and on. The point is, he can do pretty much whatever he wants, artistically – and he does.

Underneath most of the tracks, there is a scratching sound like that of a needle being put on a record – perhaps a reminder that this is a homespun effort (somewhat rough around the edges, but one that is comforting and inviting, nonetheless).

Most of the songs do have an intimate feel to them. Opener “Keep Askin’” is a slow, gritty song buoyed by acoustic guitar and piano. With few exceptions, each song is approached the same way – it begins acoustically, and within seconds, other instruments are layered in. The benefit of this technique is that Cope is able to experiment with different styles. Without a doubt, he’s strongest at the stripped-down, mostly acoustic level (“Healing Hands,” “I Couldn’t Explain Why”), but proves his open-mindedness with the reggae-tinged “Off The Ground,” the synth beat of “Jericho,” and the jam band feel of “A Father’s Son.”

A word here – two of the tracks are featured twice on the album. “Lifeline” and “Keep Askin’” are both given alternate acoustic treatments. While enjoyable, they don’t seem to differ in any substantial way from the originals. On the other hand, this is his label – why not take advantage of the freedom?