Ballads & Bangers: Handshakes in Heaven & Learn About Love

"What makes a song a banger? The most important is the hook, that sticks in your head, after you hear the song just once. In addition it will also have a solid beat, that you can't help but move to. And recognizability is also key."
(DJ Rinehart / deepinthemix.com, July 23 2023)

They sort of represent the opposite bookends of a musical bookshelf: the catchy banger and the smooth ballad. They are the flamboyant, which thrills and the mellow, which triggers feelings. Not always do they catch the broad public's attention. Maybe because the timing just isn't right, maybe because they are deep cuts that not everyone gets to hear or simply because the artist is not well enough known (yet). And although musical tastes always are personal and subjectiv, this spot here shall give those songs a little stage to shine.

Ballad: a song or poem that tells a story, or a slow love song. (dictionary.cambridge.org)

According to his homepage, Caleb Mills grew up in legendary Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Since 2020 he has been travelling back and forth to Nashville to make contacts and create music. Because the 23-year-old singer makes a living doing it - and dreaming big. Therefore he independently released his first album on February 14, 2024. It contains 10 songs, all written or co-written by Caleb Mills. It is titled "S-U-R-V-I-V-E" and reminds one a little of the Travis Tritt album titled "t-r-o-u-b-l-e".

He defines his musical stylings all the way from tender ballads to southern rock stompers. And he wants to be known for his southern soul stamp, which his grandfather introduced him to at a young age.

With the acoustic ballad 'Handshakes In Heaven' from the album he skillfully walks the fine line between kitsch and honest sadness. Written by himself, it deals with the idea of meeting someone who has passed too early in life in the heavens. A theme that lingers on, not least thanks to the melody and chorus.

I've cried and cried a thousand times over,

just hoping and praying for the day,

I walk up to Jesus, say, how y'all been?

Catch up and talk for hours, introduce me to all your friends.

I'll count every one of my blessings,

when I'm giving handshakes in heaven.

(Handshakes In Heaven / Caleb Mills)

 

 

Banger: a popular song or piece of music with a loud, heavy beat (= rhythm) that people like to dance to. (dictionary.cambridge.org)

When the 24th season of the casting show The Voice came to an end in December of 2023, 37-year-old Jacquie Roar from the state of Oregon ended up in fourth place. And that gave her not only the chance to duet with Reba McEntire on the show, but also make some important contacts in the music industry.

Currently she is working on her first album, which she describes stylistically as explosive rock country. The first two songs pre-released provide a good indication of what she means by that. Both of them, 'Bad Habit', and also 'Learn About Love', released on April 5, 2024 and on which she is not involved as a songwriter, do indeed live up to her name Roar.