John Legend has always been one love song away from going off the deep end. His polished image, movie star looks and near-storybook life has made him an ideal figure in R&B, an artist comprised almost exclusively of fairy tales and potpourri.
For his fifth studio album Darkness and Light he looks to remake his image to offer up a more accurate portrait of his life in the limelight. Using all his tools (a silky touch on the piano, a great ear for ballads and a voice made of pure gold) he deconstructs and then reconstructs notions of love: love for your brethren, love for a spouse and love of art. It spotlights both the good (light) and bad (dark), and with a warm dose of laissez faire leading the way it translates to his best album in years.
‘Darkness and Light‘
Legend links with Brittany Howard of the Alabama Shakes for a slow roasted jam. Made of equal parts funk and soul, the beat hits with authority and conviction. Legend and Howard’s piercing falsettos create a balanced contrast, and the two mesh like they’ve been performing together for years. As the title cut it presents the main idea in easy to understand ways; two contrasting emotions finding balance in one another: [LISTEN]
‘Love Me Now‘
Stepping out from the darkness, into the light and emerging a better man than before. Living life to the fullest is a common mantra, but a hard one to live by. Legend urges us to throw caution to the wind and love with no limitations attached. The beat is slightly over-produced, which doesn’t do the lyrics justice. Nevertheless, the emotional outpouring is significant and done well by one of pop’s most dynamic voices: [LISTEN]
‘Same Old Story‘
Simply crafted with nothing but a voice, a piano and some strings to set the mood. The formula, while basic on the surface is where Legend shines the most, directly in the spotlight with nowhere to hide. A somber tone consumes the melodies, and Legend scans his memory to spin a tale of heartache and love loss. It contrasts the theme of unity, and balances the scale for what is a complete portrait: [LISTEN]
‘Temporarily Painless‘
Legend takes a more carefree approach in order to display loves more flirtatious nature. The beat bounces around like your typical club jam, which has him sounding a lot like Usher. With no morals to weigh him down he takes flight in a drunken, debaucherous rage. The difference is that by his standards it may be out of context, but by most it’s still relatively tame. A class act all the way through: [LISTEN]
‘Marching Into the Dark‘
Legend dolls up his sound and addresses the creative shelf life of your average artist. It’s likely that he dressed up his voice to satirize the need to stay current with the trends because it’s clear that he doesn’t need the help. For an artist a creative death can be devastating and Legend is not immune from the sobering reality. A concern potent enough to find its way to center court: [LISTEN]
