If there was ever a recent album that evokes the color purple, I don't know a better suited one than Built to Last by The Ransom Notes from the University of Chicago. All at once majestic and regal, richly textured and luxurious, while brooding and melancholic in the same breath. And sometimes an embarrassment of abundance that it can seem suffocatingly monotonous.

I'm not sure where I fall on the spectrum in regards to the album wavering continually between an overall score of 4 and 5 as each passing reviewer's minute waxes and wanes and the jubilation and despair flows like the tide. There are so many moments where I'm throwing up my hands in exaltation when I'm intently listening, yet if my attention diverts ever so slightly to a myriad of other projects going on concurrently, the album will have played through three times (it's only 30 minutes long) and I'll be none the wiser because the sound just gets to be so heavy and dense and just there.

But what's there is so freaking good! The musicality is superb; there are dynamics and tonal shifts that make you gasp. While I'm not enamored with all of the soloists, there is no denying the instruments that they possess are uniquely crafted to the particular song they are singing. The women are the stars in that department, possessing lustrous alto lyricism and soaring soprano belts that are nuanced and seductive. The men perform with impish glee, with the occasional guttural baritone colored note drop that tickles the toes (that's Colin Garon on The Road if you want an example). Good thing I love Scott Hoying's voice, because Sharbel Romanos sounds just like him and he's all over this album, which might be much for an album that's only eight tracks long.

The arrangements are the foundation for the excellence. Corinne DiFrancesco has crafted a signature sound and style for the group, and it really works. Granted, that also can lead to the sameness tendency, but I'd often settle for cohesiveness that is stellarly executed over wildly divergent tracks that fall flat. Still, some shuffling of tempos or styles or tincture changes (from aubergine to mauve to dried lavender) could help with the "wow" factor and make the album a classic.

I'm going to be listening to this album and The Ransom Notes for a long time coming, for they are truly Built to Last.

Built to Last is a moving and cohesive release, an artful, arced album from top to bottom. Sonically alluring from the first beat on, everything here is intense, beautiful, and intensely beautiful. Honestly, you'll need aloe vera for your eyes.

I haven't listened to a full-length release from the Ransom Notes since 2017's Blueprint; nothing sounds the same. I compared Built to Last to all the big important memorable projects from scholastic and pro groups while listening to Built to Last, because the music demands it. The album credits explain why this all works so well. Figure 1: group alum Corinne DiFrancesco. Why is this music so very cohesive, so very artful, so very arced? Because she arranged seven of the eight tracks, and she's damn, damn good. I'm reminded of another University of Chicago alum, Chris Rishel, who had a similar finesse and boldness to his arranging "pen". Figure 2: Sharbel Romanos. If you've got a lead who sounds as good as Scott Hoying, why not put him on a solo mic four times? Why not, indeed. Figure 3: Toshi Mori puttin' down wildly creative beats for each and every track.

This is not to discredit the booming ensemble and skillful production team giving Built to Last so much raw power, laced up in so much intrigue. The mix is as good as it gets in a cappella, which you'll lean into immediately in this soundscape. It's hard to cherry pick favorites from a true album that should be played from start to finish, but I'll do it anyway. Fleetwood Mac released The Chain in 1977, and somehow the Ransom Notes manage to transport us to an entirely different dimension for their rendition. Also, is there a doctor on standby? You'll need one for To Be Human, an arrestingly gorgeous performance and lush chart (with DiFrancesco and Romanos as duet partners for Mori's arrangement); I can only take shallow, excited breaths when this one starts. You've been advised. And it'd be a reviewer omission to not highlight the effective pairing of Breathin' / Last Hope. It takes us high, stays put, and finds a strong resolution that'll linger with listeners for a long, long time.

Built to Last is craftsmanship and competence on full display. Hurry, hurry.

The Ransom Notes have been making larger and larger waves in the a cappella scene over the past few years. I've seen them at multiple ICCA competitions in recent years, and the quality has steadily improved. This has culminated in a Finals appearance during the virtual recorded year, so it should make perfect sense that this album is a welcome opportunity for the group to document all the growth it has made recently.

Start right at the top with Last Dance. The intro is dark and haunting, letting soloist Elyse Lynch establish a presence as a soloist. As the track progresses, the background keeps evolving, adding more and more textures to keep the track engaging, whether as complex chords or small digitized moments to keep the listener engaged.

This dark and dense style maintains itself in varying degrees for the first half of the album, and Pusher Love Girl is the first track that really offers a different side to the group. However, the number feels so far away from the strength of the group that you can almost hear the members being less engaged in the studio. This is followed by the album's two ballads back to back. The Road certainly feels more aligned to the group, and there are numerous little changes to keep everything moving forward. Colin Garon's solo does a great job to tell the story and keep everything. The group engagement has come back, but the pacing of the album is drastically thrown off by all these tracks near the end. Some shuffling of the album might help to give the album a bit better flow overall.

There's also one person that needs recognition. Corinne DiFrancesco arranged this entire album, and she has some serious chops. Across the entire album, DiFrancesco has created a sound identity for the group. It is often driving and dense. Albums that have one arranger can be tricky, as arrangers usually have their small bag of tricks, so the album can at times feel like multiple rehashings of the same idea. This is sometimes the case, but there is enough of a body of work here to say that DiFrancesco has a lot of really cool ideas. Keep an eye out for them in the future, as I'm sure there are more ideas to come

Overall, this is an album with a few highs and no real lows. It has some pacing issues and at times can feel a bit monotonous, but there are also some moments that are just absolutely tantalizing to the ear. I'm interested to see where the group goes in the coming years. Take a listen and see if you agree.