{"id":10960,"date":"2018-04-11T16:22:41","date_gmt":"2018-04-11T20:22:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.altwire.net\/?p=10960"},"modified":"2023-12-06T06:39:53","modified_gmt":"2023-12-06T11:39:53","slug":"album-review-ledger-ledger-ep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/altwire.net\/de\/album-review-ledger-ledger-ep\/","title":{"rendered":"[Album Review] Ledger – Ledger EP"},"content":{"rendered":"

Getting dropped in the deep end of joining an established popular act and being expected to keep pace while having suddenly made it big very,\u00a0very<\/em>\u00a0quickly, can probably be figuratively compared to being hit with the force of a freight train. Having relocated to the US at the age of 16, and initially filling the role of bassist for Wisconsin act\u00a0Der Funke<\/strong>, English drummer\u00a0Jenna Ledger<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0was recruited at just 18 years old\u00a0in 2008 to replace\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u2019s retiring\u00a0Lori Peters<\/strong>\u00a0She was brought into the group during the huge wake of the success achieved by 2006 studio effort\u00a0Comatose<\/em>. Immediately going on to perform live heavily with the veteran Christian rock act throughout the\u00a0Comatose Comes Alive\u00a0<\/em>tour,\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s newly found fame within\u00a0Bratpfanne\u00a0<\/strong>could have very easily been overwhelming, but as was demonstrated throughout the live performances and on to following 2009 studio effort\u00a0Wach<\/em>,\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s appearance clearly wasn\u2019t just to fill a role: she had been fully embraced, the band very much welcoming her with open arms.<\/p>\n

Indeed,\u00a0Wach<\/em>\u2019s \u2018Hero\u2019 and \u2018Awake and Alive\u2019 were immediately singled out as hugely popular highlights for the album,\u00a0Jenna Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s backing vocals on the tracks being noted by many to be a refreshing addition to the band\u2019s repertoire, providing a lighter contrast to frontman\u00a0John Cooper<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s generally harsher rock vocals. With fans being so receptive to\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s presence, it came to little surprise that 2013 studio effort\u00a0Rise<\/em>\u00a0saw more prominent utilization of the drummer\u2019s vocal abilities, with the ballad \u2018Fire and Fury\u2019 in particular displaying a far more balanced duality between\u00a0Cooper\u00a0<\/strong>Und\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In keeping with the ever-supportive nature of\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u2019s following, and having now spent 10 years performing with the band, the announcement of\u00a0Jenna Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s solo project (simply titled\u00a0LEDGER<\/strong>)\u00a0was met with the same reception: the fans were hungry and couldn\u2019t wait for more.<\/p>\n

Generally in keeping with\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u2019s catchy rock choruses and hard-hitting, guitar-heavy anthems,\u00a0LEDGER<\/strong>\u2019s debut six-track EP\u00a0Ledger<\/em>\u00a0gives the initial impression of treading fairly familiar territory; lead single \u2018Not Dead Yet\u2019 fits in very neatly alongside\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u2019s more symphonic \u2018Not Gonna Die\u2019 or riff-heavy \u2018Back From The Dead\u2019. This doesn\u2019t completely surprise, considering the EP was produced by bandmate\u00a0Korey Cooper<\/strong>, but the overall style leans a little more toward the likes of ex-Vorsatzblatt<\/strong>\u00a0vocalist\u00a0Lacey Sturm<\/strong>. Indeed, compared to\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>'S\u00a0<\/strong>slightly more polished approach, the lower end feels a little more bass-heavy, the guitar distortion buried deeper into the mix, and\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s explosive percussion essentially acts as the primary driving force for the track, complimented by the occasional uplifting piano line and\u00a0Jen<\/strong>\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0seeming completely at ease taking on sole vocal duties. In short, despite some similarities, \u2018Not Dead Yet\u2019 proves that there is personality to be found here; this isn\u2019t simply just another\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u00a0record.<\/p>\n

Continuing forward,\u00a0Ledger<\/em>\u2019s second track \u2018Warrior\u2019 remains rooted in the rockier side of things, boasting exactly the kind of defiance you would expect of its title. Amidst the agitated call-to-arms lyrical direction (\u201cthis is the sound, the sound of the warrior\u201d<\/em>), a cocky guitar riff and rather mesmerizing vocal layering at times, \u2018Warrior\u2019 builds upon the personality established with \u2018Not Dead Yet\u2019 and immediately takes things one step further. With\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0again taking the opportunity to further establish her newly found freedom vocally,\u00a0John Cooper<\/strong>\u2019s guest appearance thankfully does very little to detract from\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u2019s lead, instead being complimentary and fitting in naturally with the track. Closing track \u2018Iconic\u2019 similarly does plenty for the more rock-centric side of things, heavier percussion and chunky power chords in full abundance to boost the energetic EP.<\/p>\n

Shifting things into more electronically-driven territory, middle acts \u2018Bold\u2019 and \u2018Foreigner\u2019 trade the guitar-driven riffage for a more pop-centric approach. \u2018Bold\u2019 in particular instead embellishes things with minimalist digital instrumentation and the atmosphere that comes with it, a style that wouldn\u2019t at all be out of place on the likes of\u00a0Beleuchtung<\/a><\/strong>\u2019 latest offering\u00a0Skin & Earth.\u00a0<\/em>Vocally, it\u2019s another well-executed instance of\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0really flourishing in her own creative space, the fuzzy synthesizer-laden \u2018Foreigner\u2019 approaching things with a little more attitude, contrasted by \u2018Bold\u2019s sweetly delivered pop vocals. Both are solid offerings, but it\u2019s really through\u00a0Ledger<\/em>\u2019s fifth track that the EP touches on something really special. Fueled by the kind of melancholy that made\u00a0Verg\u00e4nglichkeit<\/strong>\u2019s \u2018My Immortal\u2019 so captivating,\u00a0Ledger<\/em>\u2019s piano-driven ballad \u2018Ruins\u2019 is at heart a display of honest vulnerability, dropping the far more defiant delivery of \u2018Warrior\u2019 to allow\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0the chance to open her heart a little. Honestly, it\u2019s quite beautifully done.<\/p>\n

Gesamt,\u00a0Ledger<\/em>\u00a0is successful in what it wants to be. It\u2019s an energetic opening act for a solo artist with clearly a lot to offer, while still allowing the influences of\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>\u00a0(and producer\u00a0Korey Cooper<\/strong>) to play their part stylistically. As a whole, it\u2019s certainly well produced, but there\u2019s a slight underlying rawness here and there that gives the instrumentation a little more room to breathe, a little less polished compared to\u00a0Bratpfanne<\/strong>'S\u00a0Entfesselt<\/em>, and this easily adds to the personality of the EP. As for\u00a0Jenna Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0herself, her vocal abilities have clearly had the chance to develop since the early offerings of\u00a0Wach<\/em>; there\u2019s a certain maturity throughout the likes of \u2018Bold\u2019 and \u2018Ruins\u2019 that makes things just that little bit more intriguing, and it\u2019s worth noting that the band\u2019s support toward\u00a0Ledger<\/strong>\u00a0throughout the process has been incredibly commendable, welcoming the ambitions of an individual within the band with open arms and supporting those ambitions with everything they have to give. Ultimately, it\u2019s obvious\u00a0LEDGER<\/strong>\u00a0is exactly the kind of project fans can rally behind, and they\u2019re going to want a whole lot more of it, too.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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