Jared James Nichols - Jared James Nichols

Despite the fact that this album has an eponymous title, something most often reserved for debut albums, this release is in fact the Nashville-based artist's third. Nichols is a singer and guitarist and an accomplished songwriter; everything here is written or co-written by Nichols. There's a bit of a Creedence Clearwater Revival bent to opening track "My Delusion" where Jared's vocals recall John Fogarty; the thumping blues rocker also features Nichols playing a brief but scalding guitar solo. "Easy Come, Easy Go" is an Aerosmith-style rocker while "Down the Drain" gives a nod to the grunge era, both in style and lyric content. "Hard Wired" is blues with Hendrix-style guitar; "Bad Roots" features a clicking bass track from Clark Singleton, precise rhythms from drummer Dennis Holm and stinging guitar riffs from Nichols, all of which enhance the notion that "We got bad roots, mama!" Nichols has a stated goal here of playing in different styles to reflect his influences and it works nicely; there's a very cohesive feel to the album. The 12-song set ends with the dreamy and psychedelic "Out of Time," a perfect sound for a cut that lyrically anticipates a personal end.

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