record reviews

August 5, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

Gloriana

Album: “A Thousand Miles Left Behind” (Emblem/Reprise/ Warner Bros.)

Grade: B

Nashville trio Gloriana, rebounding from the departure of fourth member Cheyenne Kimball, manage to make their sparkling musical arrangements and sweet harmonies come across more engagingly than ever on their second album, “A Thousand Miles Left Behind.”

Still working an acoustic-based string sound made contemporary through rhythms and musical accents, Rachel Reinert and brothers Mike and Tom Gossin prove that losing Kimball’s instrumental virtuosity doesn’t slow down their musical growth.

However, another new development does hamper their forward movement. Group members co-wrote all 11 songs after contributing only one song to their 2009 self-titled debut. The step proves a bigger challenge than they can handle.

Their potential as songwriters comes through on the album’s best cuts, including “[Kissed You] Good Night,” written by Tom Gossin and Josh Kear — and Gloriana’s first top-10 country hit. Mike Gossin’s “Turn My World Around” and Reinert’s “Where My Heart Belongs” also connect by conveying real emotions.

But the autobiographical nature of several lyrics — such as “Sunset Lovin’” and “Go On Miss Me” — fails to transform intimate experiences into universal themes. The trio’s sound is golden, but some of the songs need more polish.

—Michael McCall, Associated Press

Rick Ross

Album: “God Forgives, I Don’t” (Maybach Music Group/Def Jam)

Grade: A

Throughout his career, Rick Ross has declared himself a “bawse.” On his latest album, “God Forgives, I Don’t,” the Miami rapper continues to live up to his catchphrase, proving he’s one of the top bosses not just in hip-hop, but in music period.

His fifth solo album in six years is loaded with undeniable quality tunes, making his new offering his most well-balanced piece of work to date. It’s clear that the burly, bearded Ross — who normally dons black shades — has made strides as a lyricist and storyteller.

His husky voice is full of bravado with eloquence that is easy to digest. He stays in his familiar lane, rapping about grimy street life, his large stash of cash, luxury cars, women and his rise from rags to riches.

But what makes Ross special on “God Forgives” is his colorful perspective. That is certainly evident on “Pirates” where he raps, “Fascination with fortune afford me mansion and Porsches, panoramas, abortions, marijuana imported, dreams of getting cream and never to be extorted, seen so many things be preposterous not to record it.”

On “Maybach Music IV,” which features Ne-Yo, Ross continues his popular work with producers J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, who again craft a stunning track highlighted by smooth saxophone and other instruments.

Ross measures up with Jay-Z and Dr. Dre on “3 Kings,” and his collaboration with Andre 3000 on “Sixteen” makes for an enjoyable listen. The album also is filled with other club bangers and street anthems, such as “Hold Me Back” and “Ten Jesus Pieces,” featuring Stalley.

Of Ross’ four albums, three have debuted at No. 1 and three have reached gold status; another debuted at No. 2, and the only one not to reach gold is close to it. With “God Forgives,” Ross is consistent, and it sounds classic.

—Jonathan Landrum Jr., Associated Press

PASSION PIT

Album: “Gossamer” (Columbia)

Grade: A

Passion Pit’s 2008 debut EP, “Chunk of Change,” and 2009 full-length CD “Mind Your Manners” both were marked by such frantically hyper-indie-pop energy, and singer-keyboardist-auteur Michael Angelakos’ chipmunk falsetto, that figuring out what the difficult-to-decipher songs were about seemed unnecessary and beside the point.

But with “Gossamer,” the band’s long-in-the-works major-label debut, content has become just as crucial as form to the Passion Pit experience. That’s thanks to a lyric- writing approach that makes its seriousness apparent from the get-go with the opening immigrant’s song “Take A Walk” and continues throughout a gleaming, finely crafted, keyboard-heavy confessional pop album that lays bare Angelakos’ struggles with bipolar disorder and alcoholism.

That might sound like a downer, but Gossamer’s song surfaces shimmer and its melodies insinuate, and the album lifts up, playing like an extended love letter and thank-you note to Angelakos’ fiancee, Kristy Mucci, to whom it is dedicated. “Just believe in me, Kristina,” Angelakos sings in “On My Way” — “All these demons, I can beat them.”

Here’s hoping he’s up to the task. Passion Pit is scheduled to play the Made in America festival in Philadelphia on Labor Day weekend, but the band has canceled several recent dates because of Angelakos’ “mental health issues.”

—Dan DeLuca, Philadelphia Inquirer

BILLY JOE SHAVER

Album: “Live at Billy Bob’s Texas” (Smith Music Group)

Grade: A

One of the two terrific new songs on Billy Joe Shaver’s new live set is the autobiographical “Wacko From Waco,” in which the Lone Star legend somewhat humorously recounts a recent contretemps — he just happened to shoot a guy (in self-defense). “You best not mess with me,” he warns, before adding later, “It’s nice to be important, more important to be nice.” (A bonus studio take of the song is a duet with co-writer Willie Nelson.)

“Wacko” pretty much distills the fascinating paradox that is Billy Joe — a rough-hewn, ready-to-rumble honky-tonker with the soul of a poet and the wisdom to match. He’s one of country’s great songwriters, and this well-paced performance reaffirms that greatness as it presents Shaver delivering many of his best songs backed by a lean, sharp trio.

Numbers such as “Georgia on a Fast Train” and “Black Rose” (with its quintessential Outlaw line, “The devil made me do it the first time, the second time I done it on my own”) have a snarling rock edge, while “Live Forever,” “Old Five and Dimers,” and others take a gentle acoustic turn. Perhaps most touching is the a cappella “Star in My Heart,” which Shaver concludes with “Love you, Eddy” — a reference to his late son, who at one time accompanied him brilliantly on guitar.

—Nick Cristiano, Philadelphia Inquirer