REVIEW : Could We Survive - Blurt Magazine

If he wasn’t already, Joseph Arthur is about to move into the seriously prolific singer-songwriter category with this six-song EP is the first of four due in 2008, all leading up to full-length All You Need Is Nothing in August.

But the raw acoustic balladry of Survive certainly stands alone. Channeling another wavery-voiced political songwriter, Arthur dives immediately into the heart-wrenching protest song “Rages of Babylon” with a Dylan-like flair for nose-on-the-head lyricism. If you manage to get past that one without shedding a tear or listening five times on repeat, Survive proceeds to take a welcome stroll into more lighthearted fare, all beautifully tied together by Arthur’s signature swirling and layered choruses and ringing acoustic guitar. Arthur’s rough-hewn, somewhat deadpan vocals just make Survive feel all the more organic.