Justin Freely – What A Time To Be Alive

Justin Freely is an Australian indie artist based in Melbourne who gained experience while performing with various local musicians over the years. His debut solo recording came as a result of short hiatus from performing with musicians such as Mr. Jimmy, Leah Senior, and Foggy Notion. Justin decided to gather skillful musicians for the recording session, so the remaining portion of the group consists of Handsome Mick Stylianou on bass guitar, Captain Brooke Penrose on drums/organ/piano sound effects. Justin Freely, Vera Well and Captain Brooke Penrose are also responsible for insanely catchy backing vocals on this particular material. The comprehensive collection of musical genres stacked on this material are more than impressive. Therefore these engaging compositions are avoiding further classifications into a singular genre.

What A Time To Be Alive offers a full-specter of complementary genres merged altogether into a material worth listening to over and over again. This material unquestionably demands repetitious listening, mainly because of the profoundly detailed compositions, which offer even more hidden sonic delicacies after the first listening. This particular album carries eight thoroughly arranged numbers that lean towards Americana, but as I mentioned before, there are more hidden surprises along the way. Besides the sheer dominance of Americana, you may hear the elements of country, folk, folk-rock, rock’n’roll, indie, blues, reggae pervading from every possible direction during the entire album.

While Americana performed by Australian musicians may sound a bit strange to some listeners, Justin and the crew are emitting this specific sound like professionals. You won’t hear any difference between, and with the great assurance, I could confirm this album sounds like a charm from scratch to finish. However, the remaining portion of the abovementioned genres is giving even more flavor to this album through sophisticated articulations, accentuations, and other delicacies. Justin offers some impressive slide guitar maneuvers and solos, while the groovy rhythm section liberates more than necessary support to his improvisations. His chants are giving even more depth to the music, while the beautiful female backing vocals are spicing things up a little bit more. There is a subtle retro atmosphere roaming around throughout the entire album, which resembles seventies country and folk-rock recordings by some renowned artists.

You should give it a listen if you’re an admirer of Americana, country, folk-rock, and indie. With this album, Justin Freely proved he’s an experienced musician capable of writing, composing, and performing excellent songs without losing quality as the album proceeds towards the end. What A Time To Be Alive is available at streaming services, such as Spotify, Bandcamp, and Soundcloud.