The Banjo Song On paper, Prizefighter has all the makings of a great return to form for Mumford and Sons. The band has once again teamed up with their 2015 Wilder Mind album producer of Aaron Dessner, and this current album features several A-list collaborations from Hozier, Chris Stapleton, Gigi Perez, and Gracie Abrams. Several of these songs have guest writer credits on them from some big names in the music industry like Finneas, Brandi Carlile, and Justin Vernon. Having already released a record last year, called Rushmere, Mumford and Sons appeared to be reaching a rejuvenated approach to their songwriting. The band preceded the release of Prizefighter with two great singles in “Rubber Band Man” and “The Banjo Song” to create a solid anticipation of their sixth studio album. Yet when you push play on Prizefighter, you can’t help but think some of these songs could’ve used a little more time to marinate before seeing the light of day.
Prizefighter opens with “Here,” that invites the listener into Marcus Mumford’s state of mind as he croons, “Well, here’s my final serenade / Here’s a gun, and here’s a blade / Here’s a picture that I saved / For too long / Here’s my credit card and keys / And the reason I won’t find peace / Here’s a song I should not complete / For too long.” By the time the Chris Stapleton feature comes in, it’s hard to save the song from the basic structure that it’s created in. “Rubber Band Man” saves the jangly opener with a steady pick me up behind it and a great, uplifting chorus of, “You’re a world away / But you’re still the same / I know you by your heart / And I will call you by your name / It’s a long way / From the crack to the break / You know that I remember everything.” It gets back to the magic that Mumford & Sons crafted on their debut, Sigh No More, and makes for a memorable single.
For a band that seemed to stand apart in the indie rock field because of the incorporation of a banjo in their music, it’s a tad surprising that Mumford and Sons never titled anything “The Banjo Song” until now. The anthemic opening to the chorus of, “Well, hey / Did you call, did you fall, do you need someone? / Do you need someone?” sets the right tone, and you wish that Prizefighter had more of these feel good moments in it. “Run Together” seems content to bellow within the dark in Marcus Mumford’s delivery in the verses, while the chorus brings the listener into the light with a bright tone to it.
”Conversation With My Son (Gangsters & Angels)” is one of the few songs without a guest spot or co-writer, and it does a commendable job of getting to the heart of the topic of being a father. I found the lyrics of, “We’d rather be ruined than change / And die in our dread / But love your crooked neighbor / With your crooked heart,” to be a powerful statement of acceptance and wanting to see the good in others. The back section of the track features a repetitious refrain to bring emphasis behind each of the lyrics as the instrumentation gradually gets louder. It’s one of the highlights on Prizefighter, and it makes for a memorable marker in the sequencing of the album.
”Alleycat” is where the album starts to stray a bit. The sleepy, mid-tempo ballad navigates through metaphors of finding your place in this crazy thing called life, with only subtle changes in pacing to the song. The title track follows with an all too repetitive acoustic guitar riff and vocal cadence to make any real impact on the listener. “Begin Again” starts to get Prizefighter back on solid footing and the shimmering chorus of, “Give it up / Don’t wait / There’s nothing left to run from anyway / What happened to your good faith? / Give it up / While you can / Don’t carry your father’s sins more than you can take / I swear there’s another way.” It’s a stark reminder of why so many people became enamored with Mumford & Sons in the first place, and it’s one of the major standout moments in the set.
Unfortunately, Mumford and Sons get back to dreary tones on “Icarus” and it breaks up a lot of the momentum gained from the aforementioned uplifting song. “Stay” plays out like a love song of someone down on their luck and pulling together the last pieces to make their lover remain in their life. The lyrics of, “You said you’d wait if I should fall behind / My promise was the same to you / I know it takes all you have to escape the night / But the sun, it still rises for you,” is well-constructed and features great lyrical imagery. “Badlands” is a piano-laced ballad that features some gorgeous harmonized vocals from Marcus Mumford and Gracie Abrams throughout the verses, and it showcases the strengths of the two vocalists coming together. “Shadow of a Man” is a slow-building, mid-tempo song about regaining your footing in your outlook on life, and the band takes it all in stride. The chorus of, “This is all I am / Here in Everdene / All I ever wanted was a reason to believe / But I’ve been holding on to everything / As tightly as I can / Oh, my God, I’m just a shadow of a man / And it’s more than I can hold,” finds Marcus at his breaking point, and it’s a vulnerable and human moment in the record.
”I’ll Tell You Everything” features some picturesque lyrics and nice storytelling that feels like the band has pulled up some chairs around the campfire and invites their audience to the warmth behind the song. The track quickly fades away into the album closer of “Clover” that feels like a complimentary song to the previous one to wrap up the style found on Prizefighter. While many of these songs feature some great, uplifting moments in the sing-a-long choruses, you can’t help but feel like the other tracks that brood in the darkness take away from the overall beauty of those sections. Mumford and Sons feel like they’re on a bit of a Renaissance period of creativity as they’ve released two new albums in just two years time, and they’ve also announced a comprehensive U.S. tour in support of the two records as well. While I enjoyed Rushmere more than Prizefighter, time will tell if these newer songs begin to resonate with me the more moments I spend with them.