Review: Thrice - Beggars

Thrice have proven by now that they can pretty much do whatever the hell they want.  For a band that started out in the post-hardcore scene along with the likes of Thursday and any number of other bands, their recent output has shown an astounding level of musical adventurousness.  Starting with 2005’s Vheissu, and kicking into full throttle with 2007 and 2008’s The Alchemy Index series, Thrice have stretched out from the heavy yet literary brand of post-hardcore of their earlier releases to encompass everything from sludgy, detuned metal to stripped-down acoustic blues and keyboard-and-electronics-driven ambient soundscapes.  The sheer ambition of this kind of diversity is staggering enough, but here’s the kicker: it was all really, really good.  Every new genre or style the band decided to take on fit like a glove, and it seemed that they could do no wrong no matter what they tried next.  And, following The Alchemy Index, that was really the question - just what would Thrice try their hand at to follow up on such a great success?  Well, they decided to defy everyone’s expectations and rein their ambitions in for an album, retreating to a musical space that felt comfortable and natural.  Beggars is the result.  Basically, if Vheissu and The Alchemy Index were Thrice saying “we can play in any genre of music we want to, and it’s going to be awesome,” Beggars is the band following up that statement by saying “. . . but this is the kind of music that we enjoy playing the most.”  And it shows in the final product - though it’s not as wildly varied as the band’s previous few releases, Beggars largely rises to the same uncommonly high standard of quality as anything Thrice have done yet.

Of course, the $64 question is: after toning down the experimentation, just what kind of sound did Thrice settle on?  The answer is a little hard to place.  It’s a credit to the band, don’t get me wrong; they’ve carved out such an effective niche that it seems like they’re a genre unto themselves sometimes.  But the prevailing sound on Beggars tends towards rootsy yet heavy alternative rock with occasional hints of the band’s post-hardcore past.  “Talking Through Glass” and “At The Last” are the album’s fastest, heaviest tracks, and it’s here that their past musical tendencies peek through the most.  On the other hand, the album’s slower, more expansive songs (such as “Circles” and “The Great Exchange”) contain the kind of atmosphere and sonic experimentation exemplified on releases like Vheissu and The Alchemy Index (particularly the latter’s Water disc).  But the band seems to strike its best grooves on the mid-tempo songs, like album opener “All The World Is Mad” and “In Exile.”  It’s clear that the majority of the material here was based around the results of four guys in a room jamming out, rather than any lofty, cerebral concept like the one behind The Alchemy Index.

All four of those guys turned in great performances for Beggars, but the one that stands out the most by far is that of vocalist/lyricist/guitarist Dustin Kensrue.  Thrice has always been known for featuring Kensrue’s great lyrics (or at least I’ve always loved his work, and I doubt I’m in the minority here), and on Beggars, he turns in some of his best work yet.  Kensrue has become a master at fitting his lyrics perfectly to the cadence of the song; barely a word on the whole record seems rhythmically awkward or out-of-place.  His sense of meter is almost Shakespearian.  And yet his words carry true emotion and meaning behind them - just look at “The Weight” and “Wood And Wire” for examples of Kensrue’s incredibly poignant lyrical work.  His vocal delivery has taken leaps and bounds as well: he’s clearly taken a lot of the bluesy influence of the band’s recent work to heart (not to mention his acoustic solo record, Please Come Home), evidenced by his soulful, husky inflection on a lot of the material here.  Of course, on the heavier tunes, his raspy hardcore bark comes back for a bit; by and large, though, it seems that Kensrue has evolved into nearly a full-fledged blues crooner.  Which works surprisingly well with the music backing him up; the four-piece has clearly developed into a well-oiled machine that’s comfortable with playing a very wide range of music, and Beggars displays just enough of that versatility to prove that there’s still a whole lot of uncharted territory left to hear Thrice explore.  And I, for one, can’t wait to hear what they decide to do next.

Rating: 4/5

Standout Tracks:
“The Weight”
“In Exile”
“Wood And Wire”
“The Great Exchange”

Release Date: September 14, 2009