Some Nights
Fun.
Fueled by Ramen/ Nettwerk
Pretty much anyone can create a track rife with Auto-Tune and synthesized backings with new technologies. While they might reach a level of commercial success, it’s only an illusion of talent.
In other cases, like Fun.’s second studio album, Some Nights, the band uses this technology to instead enhance their skill.
With a mixture of live and synthesized instruments, and natural and electronically modified vocals, Nate Ruess and Fun. deliver a unique set of tracks, although some suffered more from modification.
Some Nights begins with Ruess’ soaring vocals accompanied by barbershop-like harmonies in the the title track. Backed by rhythms reminiscent of a military marching band, the band makes excellent use of heavy textures and is able to create moments of contrasting silence, mirroring the ups and downs of youth explored in the album’s themes.
However, technology seems to be the pitfall of the fourth track where the album hits a snag. With very little modification to vocals and instrumentation up to this point, the heavily auto-tuned “It Gets Better” is a bit jarring at first. The opening vocals are dissonant and while they may soften soon after, some listeners might find themselves reaching for the “next” button before that happens.
Auto-Tune can be a tasteful, artistic device but its use takes away from tracks such as “It Gets Better” and “Stars.” The ladder begins with impressive vocals in a range that most men could never imagine reaching. Ruess’ vocals are strong enough to stand on their own.
However, what begins with upbeat claps and steadily climbing vocals soon becomes much too laid back in comparison and within a range easily reached by Ruess’ voice. Auto-Tune takes control once again and creates a dissonance that makes the last four minutes of the song less enjoyable to listen to.
While you might want to pass over a few tracks here and there, Some Nights has many more that you will want to listen to in their entirety.
Notable songs include “We Are Young,” featuring Janelle Monáe, which fans of Glee should recognize, and “Carry On,” which not only demonstrates the full scope of Fun.’s talent and artistry, but also carries an inspirational message.
The lyrics seem to express the stereotypical thought patterns of pretty much any 20-something. Some Nights‘ lyrics are straightforward, but still manage to capture feelings any young adult can relate to instantly like on “Stars” with “Some nights I rule the world / The bar lights with pretty girls / But most nights I stay straight and think about my mom.”
The tracks range from reflections on the nights spent going out or the ones spent contemplating the past or looking to the future.
Some Nights has its own ups and downs musically, but ups and downs is what this album’s all about.
