Bebo Norman
Self-Titled
BEC Recordings
Grade – A

The first thing I noticed about Bebo Norman’s latest (self-titled) release was that it was unlike what he has done to this point. He is well known for his acoustically poetic singer-songwriter style but with this latest release there is a noticeable edginess that nudges Bebo out of the confines of the usual definition of a singer-songwriter.

I mean right from the start with “Ruins,” the listener is struck with this multi-layered style of vocals and ethereal or subdued soundtrack that quickly turns cinematic (as they describe in the press materials). All together it has an artistic flare that hooks you and it is so easy to get caught up in the lyrics as well.

One of the songs that is getting a lot of attention is “Britney,” which if you checked it out onYouTube you would think the song is specifically about Britney Spears. While the name is the same and the circumstances are the same, the song really speaks to girls/women in general, in a toxic culture that sets nearly unattainable goals for beauty, success, and happiness. The song points to God who is, as Bebo has noted, “bigger than the pain this world so often leaves them in,” referring to young women in our culture.

The latest release also finds Bebo Norman on a new label, which may account for the artistic freedoms he seems to have been afforded. Or it could simply be that Bebo Norman is at a place in life where the status quo is just not good enough. Either way, the new album is an asset to an already well-liked and successful discography.

- Ken W.