By Brandon Benguaich

Danny Boone’s new album, Fish Grease, kind of reminds me of fish grease, although I have admittedly not had much exposure to it in my life and it is not something I particularly want to dive into at first glance.

So who is Danny Boone, purveyor of fish grease? A simple Google search brings up a former major league pitcher, but I have yet to find a baseball-playing rapper. After doing some digging, I found out that Danny Boone (his real name is Danny Alexander) is from a country/rock/hip-hop band, Rehab, which originated in Georgia, USA, and has seven albums under their belt. One can assume that Danny Boone’s Fish Grease is his attempt at branching off as a solo artist; however, after sitting through the entire album, I can agree that it is an album boasting twelve tracks of country tunes, but most of the songs arise a response out of me that I can only describe as “meh.”

Now do not get me wrong: I do not hate Danny Boone or his breakthrough album — I am not a country fan by any means, but I am not the type to completely dismiss a genre. Overall, the album is hard to describe. The first few tracks are very country, but towards the end its starts to get a little weird. The first track, “Raise a Toast,” accurately sets the tone for most of the album. It is pop-y, uses the same four chords repeatedly, and is heavily produced. Then there are tracks like “Camo Bikini,” where Danny Boone attempts to rap over prerecorded Garage Band-esque loops. What mainly threw me off on that track was a specifically absurd lyric: “Play that g-string like a standup bass.” The last track I should mention is “Fish Grease,” because that is the album’s namesake, and I actually really liked this track. It is catchy and makes me bob my head up and down. Danny Boone’s rapping is good, although he is no Snoop Dogg (Lion).

Overall, Fish Grease is confusing, and I am not sure what kind of statement Danny Boone is trying to make. It is not bad per se, but it is definitely weird. I have concluded that country and rap are two genres that should be mixed together sparingly, but if you find someone that pulls it off, then please let me know! Fish Grease is ultimately autological — the album is truly like physical fish grease: weird and I do not want to come across it again.