Beyond The Turntable

Militant themed Of Truth and Reconciliation is a great follow-up to Staple's first album. Darin Keim once again does a great job of writing lyrics with strong messages that complement the music well.

"We knew early on that we wanted this album to talk about owning up and facing tough issues. It's about confronting reality, facing challenges and not backing down but making things right," says Keim of this CD. Keim offers The Day the Blind Revolted as a great example of this. This song is about questioning what you're taught, not just blindly accepting everything:

Open eyes / reveal the thing that's been missing / peace of mind / that we won't fall for anything / or fall in line / accepting rations naively / for now we find / we won't be swayed so easily / with open eyes

One of my favorite songs on the album, Gavels From Gun Barrels, is about a man being judged for his wrongdoing:

Shots ring out / as my last mili-seconds unwind / time bloats with fresh gun-smoke / forcing me to review / what I've done with my life / too late to change / too soon to die

The song goes on to talk about God's grace that can save anyone. Keim wrote the third song, Honor and Integrity during a "really low spiritual point." He said is life on-stage was completely different than who he was off-stage. The song serves as his accountablity to this:

I've tried to show the world / just how great a man can be / but this great man / I've charaded / is the farthest thing from me / the man that I've shown is a man I don't know

This CD is a must-have for fans of Staple. Fans of all rock will enjoy Staple's sophomore effort.

Visit: Staple, Flicker Records.