Ok...right off the bat, you should know that this is a biased review. I know Rick Colado and we used to work together along with his wife and his former band at Eclipse a couple of years ago. So to say I'm going to like this record almost seems obvious to me because I've always thought that Rick was a star; he's charismatic, ridiculously talented, can make the ladies swoon, and write a pretty good song. As times change and people move on I lost touch with Rick but never lost interest in his music. I have to admit that upon receiving YoungsterI was pretty well chuffed that he was still making music.
Youngster, sees Rickolus growing up as a songwriter and coming up with rich, texturally exciting, and deep songs that are a far cry from his Julius Airwave days. While you can't help but compare his voice to any number of Northwestern indie rock bands, he's got a subtlety and shyness about him that almost makes him seem a bit too twee for his own good. While that might be a detriment to some, I think that's really half of his charm; Rick sounds like a nerdy kid that just happens to know how to write a fine pop song as well as play World or Warcraft. That being said his music is not all tweeness and games. In fact, much of Youngster is a moody album of brilliant pop songs dedicated to putting his days of youth and yore behind him. Rickolus is clearly at his best here and this album surpasses anything he ever did with his former band Julius Airwave or his nineteen million other side projects he's tackled since I've known him.
Whether it's marriage, his daughter, living here, being in bands, seeing things change or whatever; his influences have helped shaped the experiences that led to this recording and it's as if Rickolus has created a sweeping world of dramatic highs and lows in which we can all get lost in. This is what the Shins have always wanted to sound like and it's what Ballboy would sound like if they were from the South as opposed to Scotland and that folks is far from a bad thing. This is the sort of record you want to call your best friend because it knows you and you know it. It's a happy sad sort of thing that's as likely to put a smile on your face as it is to bring tears to your eyes and you have to love that about it. It's a gorgeous effort that's made even more impressive when you learn that he pretty much did all by himself. I think it would be easy to say that Youngster is one of the best cathartic and artistic experiences I've heard.
From the piano led shyness of, "My Old Face," to the downtempo, sweeping, slow pop of "King Among Kings," Youngster demonstrates that Rickolus is clearly one of the best songwriters in Jacksonville if not the country. Rickolus has come up with a great record and he's not lost an ounce of talent since the dissolution of Julius Airwave. The guy is clearly a star and a talent and I sincerely hope this album sees him get the credit he truly deserves. Youngster is loaded with the melodies, harmonies, lyrics, and songs that should make that possible and as someone from Jacksonville his talent and his record is something that needs to be celebrated. Here's to you Rick and do you have that ten bucks I lent you back in 2006?
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