There was a rather unique set of expectations when the leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, announced album “Wake Up!” earlier this fall. Was it just a cheap cash-in targeted towards devout Catholics? Would its accompanying progressive rock and symphonic composers find a way to make a cohesive album? “Wake Up!” can’t be dismissed as a simple cash-grab, but when removed from the overarching context of a musical release from one of the world’s most significant spiritual leaders and viewed simply as a piece of music, it fails to justify itself as stretching beyond the boundaries of an audiobook in favor of a musical experience.
That’s not to say the music never has its interesting moments. The opening track is full of cheesy-yet-lovable 70s synth lines that many early prog rock groups would have used, and it actually features a nice build up of symphonic elements.
The first half of the album does an admirable job flipping back and forth between various global styles of music, like “Salve Regina’s” Indian backing or “Cuidar el Planeta,” which could have been pulled right out of a Latin American-themed soundtrack. These different styles make for decent musical moments, but every other track following the title track falls back on dull symphonies and choirs to drag the album along.
Ironically, the most glaring issues in “Wake Up!” are also its selling points: Pope Francis’s speeches. The album can’t decide whether it wants to be a Spanish audiobook or a musical experience, and haphazardly throws the two into one awkward package. The recipe is simple: music plays, it fades out, Pope Francis shares his wisdom (in Spanish), the music fades back in, rinse and repeat. Imagine Comcast repeatedly putting someone on hold for 55 minutes, only Pope Francis is on the other end and the hold music features a choir. These samples never feel cleverly interwoven into the accompanying music, and the lazy use of fadeouts can’t mask the album’s poor composition.
“Wake Up!” is as reserved and soft-spoken yet moving and heart-warming as Pope Francis himself. The album’s title suggests it was meant to have the same effect, but the weight of a foreign tongue topped by largely bland music hinders its inspiration. “Wake Up!” falters as a wake-up call, serving only to lull its listeners to sleep.
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