Cool Hand Luke

If any complaint could be leveled at Cool Hand Luke, it would be that while they have a knack for writing honest lyrics without sounded heavy handed or insincere, they also have been known to sacrifice memorable music for the sake of their lyrics. This was certainly true of their last couple albums, which had standouts where the music and melodies would stick in your head, but also had too many tracks where the music was creative, but felt rather aimless and forgettable. Here, on, The Sleeping House, they’ve managed to overcome that hurdle, at least for the most part.

The album starts off with what might be the best song the band has released to date, “Cast Your Bread”, which possesses a quick pace and a catchy piano-driven hook. The lyrics are a take on the saying that if you cast your bread on the water, it will return, used here as an allegory to the Biblical idea of those who lose their life will find it. The band keeps from delving into preachiness and instead create a song that welcomes anyone to listen to it without watering down the message. The song then supports ideas brought up in other songs, like, “Buy The Truth”, and, “Wonder Tour”, which also address the importance of reliance on God over material things, and do so in a personal way by way relating it back to the band’s own experiences without becoming too vague and non-specific.

Reliance on God also shows up “Eye Of The Storm,” though this is a reliance that God will fulfill His promises and that His word can be trusted. The song follows a simple piano line as the lyrics tell the story of a man whose daughter has died and all the emotions he goes through as a result. Unlike a lot of songs that deal with grief, this one gives no easy answers or trite words of comfort, avoiding the temptation of lashing out for someone to blame. Instead it goes the way of wrestling with grief against holding to the belief that there’s still a purpose and he will see his daughter again, concluding with the haunting line, “God is good all the time / Even when little girls die.” It’s the simplicity and, there’s that word again, honesty, that really causes the song to evoke a memorable emotional reaction, without any sort of contrived manipulation.

Another prominent theme throughout the album is wrestling with the balance between being who God wants us to be and the pressure to be what people want us to be. This comes through most clearly on songs like, “Spirit Sing”, “The Mirror”, and “The City Prevails”, the last of which is an energetic rocker that ends with the desperate cry of, “Don’t be silent, God / Or I will fall into the world”. The band does a good job of using the vocals and music to really get the full struggle across, which is refreshing in an industry that isn’t known for spending a lot of time talking about the difficulties of being a Christian.

Overall, if you had a hard time getting into Cool Hand Luke in the past, get this album; it’s the most catchy and accessible thing the band has released and it may also be their best work. If you’ve never heard the band before and want a band to be honest about their spirituality without compromising their artistry, start with this album. Either way, it’s an album that deserves a spot in anyone’s record collection.

Tagged as: Cool Hand Luke, The Sleeping House

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