Hank III's Rebel is Still Within

I toss out the phrase “not reinventing the wheel” pretty freely here. I don’t mean nothing by it; all I’m saying is that a band has found something that works for them and their fans and they stick with it. You don’t want to pick up, say, a Metallica record only to find out they’ve decided to have a try at some Lady Gaga sounds. No, you sure don’t.

Take it as an endorsement, then, when I tell you Hank III ain’t reinventing nothing on Rebel Within, his new album. “I’m drunk (again), and stoned (again), let’s fuck (again) ‘til dawn (again),” goes the title track. So it should come as no surprise to fans that III is still drifting, stoned, lonesome, and everything else he’s been for the past decade.

As someone said on the Hank III message board: “I think he's gonna do whatever the fuck he wants to anyway...no matter how many people pick it apart.” So if you haven’t liked his previous albums, you won’t like this one. But if you, like me, are a fan, then you’re going to want to get yourself a copy of Rebel Within.

Rebel Within.mp3