Is It Really Acoustic? Who Cares? | Posted June 11, 2012
Family Force 5's latest release III.V is a follow up to 2011's III. It features two brand-new tracks and acoustic remixes of four others.
The album starts with some of that classic FF5 guitar sound on "Zombie." The bass hits and the vocals are hard with great rhymes. Staying true to their own sound and breaking down walls between Southern Rock and hip hop. The song is a great re-introduction to FF5 if you haven't listened in a while.
Next up is a great party anthem, "Cray Button." Somewhat reminiscent of "Dance or Die," this song is filled with synth and bass. The lyrics say, "I wonder what happens if I hit the cray button; I guarantee the whole place starts jumpin." And that's exactly what will happen if you throw this down at a party. Everybody will start moving.
The first of four "acoustic" remixes is up next with, "Love Addict (Backwoodz Acoustic Remix)." The definition of acoustic is very loose in the realm of FF5. The guitar is acoustic, but there is still a heavy dose of effects on the vocals and some sampling. Let's just say it is a long way from unplugged. It truly is a remix though. The vocals are all redone, and it sounds great.
"Kountry Gentleman (Gatorbait Acoustic Remix)" follows next. This is an awesome song. The lyrics are tongue-in-cheek, bordering on genius. The juxtaposition of the "Dirty South" and a gentleman is pure gold. The acoustic guitar gives a more Southern feel compared to the original. The guys nailed this remix.
Another Dance or Die track is up next with "Fever (Booyah Acoustic Remix)." The guitar work on this song is really good. They reproduce the bass line very well just with the acoustic guitar, and the electronic drums add just enough punch. For "acoustic," it bangs pretty hard.
The acoustic remix of "Superhero" closes out the project. This is a departure from the usual sound of Family Force 5 and makes me long for some more of this from them. This is a worship anthem that could be sung in any church. It's a cleaned up version of the video version that was released around Easter. I never thought I'd ever put FF5 in my worship playlist, but they are firmly planted there now. At the end of the day we all want a superhero to rescue us, and what greater superhero do we have than Jesus Christ?
Closing Thoughts:
As a whole, this is a great addition to any music collection. It throws out a new level of artistry from Family Force 5. If you haven't heard them before, crawl out from under your rock and pick this up to get a taste of the Southern fried electro grooves. You will want to go back and listen to the original versions of the songs and make the comparisons yourself, which isn't a bad thing because every once in a while some hard hitting bass and electro-funk is just what the doctor ordered.
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