Gilbert Louie Ray's latest album, Only Dogs Can Judge Me, is a comforting exploration of what it means to be human.
The 12-track album leans into the familiar twang of country and bluegrass, utilizing the genre's rich history of storytelling, to craft humorous yet intensely relatable stories, and he does so with a very clear and easy on the ears vocal delivery. Ray views this record as a personal milestone, its significance and success lying in the pristine fusion of bluegrass, folk, Americana, and country that he has been pursuing for years.
"The DWP," the lead single aptly titled after the Department of Water and Power, is an ode to having bills to pay. Centering around the stresses of holiday gift giving in the midst of financial insecurity, Ray questions the necessity of the tradition: "Why'd I have to go in debt to say how much I love you / I coulda shown it more through the year," he sings.
The accompanying music video shares a similarly irreverent tone, featuring Ray driving around neighborhoods dressed as Santa Claus, throwing wrapped gifts onto doorsteps. Both the music video and the song end with him alone with his cats, surrounded by reminders from the DWP.
Another standout track, "Dui," recounts the story of a car accident caused by intoxication. The seriousness of the topic is spun through tongue and cheek lyricism and fast-paced instrumentation that lightens the tone of the song from somber to approachable. The events are related at breakneck pace, slowing down to deliver the key message: "Listen please and turn in your keys / And call a cab before you get a taste of hell."
A 2023 single, "What I Have Left" explores the complex realities of relationships and love. The song makes use of familiar instruments and a laid-back tempo that draws the listener in as Ray sings of a failed relationship. In the music video, the intimacy of the song is made even more apparent, depicting him singing to a faceless driver in the back of a rideshare on the way to the airport. The shots are framed so that the listener could be in the place of the driver, making the confessional nature of the track more immersive and moving.
"New Faces" closes out the album with a slow acoustic piece that highlights Ray's vocal and guitar skills. The lyrics discuss the realities of friendships and the passage of time, repeating, "New faces come and go / Up in the city." In a fitting close to an album dedicated to honestly portraying the messiness of life, the track reminds the listener that "In a year's time / Things will be different but still the same."
Doing so in a most approachable and likable fashion, Gilbert Louie Ray unabashedly depicts the universal hardships each season of life brings, sparing him from judgement from all but the most important creatures of all -- dogs.
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