Project Description

ALOE BLACC
‘All Love Everything’
Album Review

(8th October 2020)

Reviewer – Jacob Morris

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Aloe Blacc returns with the perfect remedy for current challenging times of uncertainty. “All Love Everything” provides a heartfelt outlook on life through uplifting stories of love, understanding and appreciation.

It’s easy to understand how Aloe Blacc has topped music charts with his catchy, insightful compositions throughout the years. It only requires a brief moment to recognise the hit singles “I Need a Dollar,” “The Man” and “Wake Me Up.” With a seven-year gap since his last proper studio album and becoming a father, fans can rejoice at the artist’s return with “All Love Everything.” It comes as no surprise that a focus on family is a predominant theme throughout the record, as Aloe explains “becoming a father made me want to share those experiences in music.” Aloe intertwines his personal stories with messages of positivity, enabling “All Love Everything” to connect with listeners by evoking emotion through relatable experiences.

The record begins as delicate instrumentals open up “Family,” and a groovy bassline and soft percussion enable Aloe’s voice to take the centre stage. It’s an effective way to open the album as listeners will be able to immerse themselves into Aloe’s storytelling while also introducing the concept of family that will remain a recurring theme carried throughout the record. Once acoustic guitar chords join the mix, the song immediately springs to life for the chorus. Aloe spreads a heart-warming outlook regarding family helping each other cope in the darkest of days and it’s a perfectly fitting opener for “All Love Everything.” The album title track is a love song that successfully provides a catchy, soothing melody, even if the lyrical content doesn’t provide anything that hasn’t been said before. Fortunately, Aloe brings a spiritually soulful charm to this style of song and his voice remains a delight to the ears. “All Love Everything” is sure to get stuck in listeners’ heads as they sing along to the chorus, and its vigorous positivity is a welcomed addition to a troubling year.

Listeners will have already sung along to “My Way,” which came out back in June prior to the album’s release and it’s not hard to tell why Aloe chose this album standout as a single. “My Way” spreads the perpetually relevant message that personal goals and ambitious dreams should not be hindered by naysayers. In the track’s bridge, Aloe sings “every time they build a wall around me, I will tear it down.” The addition of a choir helps strengthen the impact of Aloe’s inspirational message and the result is a wonderful accomplishment. Time will tell if “My Way” will stand tall alongside Aloe’s preceding hit singles. Continuing the album’s spread of positivity, “Wherever You Go” starts immediately with Aloe’s vocals heard in a similar way to how “Family” opened. The track’s slow tempo guides a build up of piano, percussion and bass, progressing into a release of high emotion through Aloe’s singing, allowing for a demonstration of his impressive vocal range. From here on the tempo remains at a consistent energetic level, which elevates the impression of the heart-warming lyrics.  

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“Nothing Left But You” adopts a contemporary pop style as it predominantly features an array of synthesizers and digital percussion, instead of acoustic guitar and piano. The track explores the concept of true love and how affection shouldn’t be focused on physical appearances and cosmetics. Aloe sings, “just give me your finesse with the flaws in it,” as he spreads the message that true romantic feelings aren’t influenced by superficial factors. Although the lyrical content provides an important message about insecurities, it can’t be helped wondering if the signature pop instrumentals in “Nothing Left But You” hinder the track from standing out as strong as it potentially could have if it had taken a more musically creative approach. Fortunately, “Glory Days” finds Aloe implementing a more upbeat R&B style, helping the record continue sounding fresh at its midpoint and providing more experimentation. The track’s lyrical content explores nostalgia along with showing appreciation for the important people in life who remain through thick and thin.

Album lead single “I Do” slows the tempo down with a piano driven romantic ballad that showcases Aloe expressing affection for his wife. It’s a song specifically written for her and listeners will be able to feel the emotion that Aloe displays in full force. Cleverly utilising traditional ‘I do’ marriage vows, Aloe repeatedly sings “now I do” as a way of showing he now understands the answers to questions concerning true love. It’s a sincere display of emotion that will no doubt be played at several weddings to come. “Corner” slightly increases the tempo but is mostly another slower track. Whilst it stands out on its own as a pleasantly sounding, soothing song that further spreads inspirational outlooks, it may become somewhat lost in the album overall. Perhaps it would have been more effective if the song were placed somewhere else on the record, as it bares resemblance to “I do” with its piano led composition and lyrics of loving support and appreciation. Regardless, listeners will find plenty to love about the high spirit and pure hearted sound of “Corner.”

“Hold On Tight” is the album’s third single and begins urgently with a groovy bassline accompanied by Aloe’s vocals and a background choir. The track hits close to home as it focuses on precarious times and overcoming a challenging future of uncertainty, making it more relatable now than ever. The song successfully evokes the listener’s emotions by blending relatable subject matter with an upbeat, heartfelt composition. Album closer “Harvard” is an acoustic piece that allows Aloe’s storytelling abilities to shine. It examines the misconception and opinion that a university degree is required for experiencing a meaningful and successful life. Through the lyrical content, Aloe shares an eventful memory with listeners in which he recalls conversing with someone who despite not having a degree, is able to celebrate lifelong dreams and ambitions. “Harvard” is a fitting closer to an album that never dismisses the wonders of life.

Through meaningful stories of love, understanding and appreciation, Aloe Blacc’s heartfelt outlook on life is an upliftingly pleasant experience. While “All Love Everything” may not contain unprecedented styles and sounds, it is a much-needed remedy filled with positivity that shines bright in current dark times.   

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Buy/Stream ‘All Love Everything’ Here  

‘All Love Everything’ 
Tracklist

1. Family
2. All Love Everything
3. My Way
4. Wherever You Go
5. Nothing Left But You
6. Glory Days
7. I Do
8. Corner
9. Hold On Tight
10. Harvard

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Follow ALOE BLACC
Official Site – Facebook – Instagram – Twitter

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About ALOE BLACC

Aloe Blacc is a singer, songwriter, producer, and activist born to Panamanian immigrants who settled in California. Aloe was raised on the musical stylings of salsa, merengue, and cumbia and eventually discovered artists like KRS-One, Donny Hathaway, Joni Mitchell, and James Taylor – inspiring his unique fusion of soul, folk, R&B, and pop. From crossover hit ‘I Need a Dollar’ to the chart-toppers ‘Wake Me Up’ and ‘The Man’, Aloe has stamped his name on the music scene globally.

In 2019, Avicii’s family honored their son’s wish to have Aloe Blacc’s vocals feature on the first track from Avicii’s posthumous album, ‘TIM’. The song ‘SOS’ was released in April to a welcome response from Avicii fans worldwide and topped the charts in several countries around the world, hitting No. 1 on the US Dance Charts. Several other collaborations with hit producers followed, including works with David Guetta, Lost Frequencies, Gryffin, Flight Facilities, Young Bombs, Mesto, and Hellberg. 

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AMNPLIFY – DB