{"id":12980,"date":"2019-10-10T10:15:10","date_gmt":"2019-10-10T15:15:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/garyhayescountry.com\/?p=12980"},"modified":"2023-09-03T20:18:54","modified_gmt":"2023-09-03T20:18:54","slug":"double-album-feature-cody-jinks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/garyhayescountry.com\/?p=12980","title":{"rendered":"Double Album Feature – Cody Jinks – After The Fire \/ The Wanting"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Joshua Wallace<\/b><\/p>\n

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Cody Jinks is back with his follow up to 2018\u2019s Lifers release.  This time around he\u2019s releasing 2 different albums a week a part.  This is a different strategy from the typical double album release most artists would do with this kind of output.  However, I feel like these two albums stand out on their own. Each record has its own loose lyrical theme with After The Fire focusing on the aftermath of events and The Wanting focusing on opposites like light vs dark and good vs evil.  Jinks worked with some of his common co-writers on these albums. Names fans will be familiar with like Josh Morningstar, Ward Davis, Tennessee Jet and Paul Cauthen are all here. There really isn\u2019t a bad track on either of these albums, but here are a few of my favorites.<\/span><\/p>\n

After The Fire<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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This album kicks off with the title track \u201cAfter The Fire\u201d.  It describes the lows of a man who lost it all and the thing that potentially saves him in the end.  It\u2019s a perfect introduction to the theme of this album which appears to be touching on the aftermath of certain events through one\u2019s life.  I love the great pedal steel work on this one. \u201cYesterday Again\u201d continues the theme with a song taking place after a breakup. Jinks is looking back and wanting to do \u201cyesterday again\u201d and hoping for the best the second time around.  It\u2019s a great piece of songwriting and a track that will resonate with a lot of listeners.<\/span><\/p>\n

Up next is the song \u201cThink Like You Think\u201d.  This track originally appeared on one of Cody\u2019s early albums called Collector\u2019s Item.  These are no longer in production, so this remake of the song is putting the track back out there.  It\u2019s a great tune that follows a character after a drunken bender and his wife gets onto him because his actions do not follow his beliefs.  I love the message here and the play of light vs dark and good vs evil with this very sobering song.  <\/span><\/p>\n

Another amazing song on this record is the tearjerker \u201cWilliam and Wanda\u201d.  It follows an elderly couple finally meeting again in the afterlife. I won\u2019t describe this one any further because it truly must be heard to appreciated.  \u201cOne Good Decision\u201d picks the pace back up on a track that is sure to be a fan favorite live. It\u2019s about a man who has had his night at the bar and isn\u2019t really struggling with the decision he has to make on whether to go home or cheat because he\u2019s got a good thing at home.  It\u2019s a lyrical take on the end of the night at the bar song you don\u2019t hear very often.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Wanting<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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\u201cSame Kind Of Crazy As Me\u201d is going to be the anthem of these two records.  I expect this one to be on Jinks setlists for a while. It\u2019s a great tune right in line with his other most popular songs and it will resonate with a lot of his fans.  \u201cNever Alone Always Lonely\u201d is a song that is about how you can always be lonely even in a crowd. I personally know this feeling very well.  Lyrically Jinks plays off that theme a lot with lines like \u201cEasy to find, seldom seen\u201d. It\u2019s a very well written song that captures that feeling that a lot of people don\u2019t always get.<\/span><\/p>\n

I really dig the imagery in \u201cWhich One I Feed\u201d.  It\u2019s a song that highlights the lyrical theme of light vs dark and opposites in this album.  \u201cIt Don\u2019t Rain In California\u201d is another well written song about a breakup where \u201cShe said she needed sunshine \/ She had enough of clouds\u201d and California represents the sunshine and the main character of the song is the clouds.  It continues the play on opposites that you see throughout this album and it\u2019s really clever. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRamble\u201d is a cover of the Chris Hennessee song from his 2018 album of the same name. Jinks does a great cover here and I love how he always represents artists who don\u2019t always get their due on a big stage like this.  If you\u2019re not familiar with Chris Hennessee, I highly recommend checking out his work. Finally the album closes out with \u201cThe Raven And The Dove\u201d.  It\u2019s another song of opposites about how some days can be good and some can be bad. The acoustic guitar work is the highlight here as it plays off a foot stomping beat and I can imagine this one being a live favorite as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

These two albums include some of Cody Jink\u2019s best work.  There isn\u2019t a bad track in the bunch and there are some that many fans will call their new favorites.  Personally, I think The Wanting is my favorite disc of the two, but it is very close. I will admit, when he announced that he was releasing two separate albums instead of one double disc, my main concern was that these songs would be thrown on each of the albums with no rhyme or reason for them being there.  You can put that concern to rest as the track listings for each album make sense and carry their own lyrical themes throughout each record. As a final note, I hope to be able to catch Cody Jinks live next month and report back here with some live reviews of these new tracks so keep an eye out for that. In the meantime, After The Fire is out October 11th, 2019 and The Wanting is out October 18th, 2019 and you can find them anywhere.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cody Jinks – After The Fire (2019)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n