Album Review: Grey Reverend “A Hero’s Lie”

by Sarah Young

Picking up from the EP Everlasting out last month, Grey Reverend, a solo project by L.D Brown, demonstrates integrity and determination to satisfy listeners while getting his messages across. A Hero’s Lie is an endearing 11-track album.

A Hero’s Lie starts on a great note with “Everlasting” from the previous EP and goes into a song called “My Hands” which sounds like a tune you’d hear in a movie during a rainy sequence. It’s rather calming – a smooth way to start off the rest of the album. The track “My Way” portrays an innovative sound with its joyful instrumental in the middle, going back into guitar strums with honest lyrics and a steady, rhythmic voice. The kind of song one may listen to on the back porch of a cottage, wind in the air, with an iced tea in hand.

The Grey Reverend project has opened up eyes and ears to a new sound of musical talent, which leads to the next point. Though it has no lyrics, this is one of the most emotionally expressive pieces on the album. The passion and desire to be heard is blatantly clear while the title track, “A Hero’s Lie”, built around a powerful guitar melody it grows into a great representation of the album as a whole.

The song that stands out the most on the album, however, is “Belafonte”. This is the song that most explores the artist’s vocal range, creation of unique sounds, harmonies, and lyrics. This is the song that brings it all home.

L.D Brown has, once again, created a strong set of songs that show deeper meaning of life and living, from love to lust and to friendship and family.