Nick Black - Deep Blue

Nick Black - Deep Blue 

URL: http://nickblackmusic.com/ 

Few young performers in any genre can say they match both Nick Black’s energy and finesse. The wont of musical youth is usually casting as many notions about lightness of touch as possible in favor of a full on, authentic rush. The energy of the young often throttles listeners upside their heads with its obviousness. Nick Black, instead, is working in a cross-section of traditional styles and pushes his music through an assortment of tempos and tropes with urgency that never comes off as unconsidered. It’s an awesome balance to achieve. Few releases from such young performers ever come off so filler-free. Even after a few listens, Black’s audience is likely to discover that there’s not a single song out of the ten compromising Deep Blue has style to burn and concerted musical value that never comes off as posing. Instead, Nick Black comes off as masterful.  

Horns dominate much of the musical thrust on Deep Blue’s opener “Ocean” and Black sings with great earnestness and an openness of spirit. The dance that his voice quickly achieves with the piano lines cascading through the mix is the song’s central melodic pivot, in a way, but the guitar work rising out of the mix for some vivid fills likewise contributes much to the song. “Grownups” starts off not seeming quite as serious in intent, but it’s clear pretty quickly that Black’s ambitions here and those of the songwriting might be a little subtler than they are letting on. This is as fine of a song as you’ll hear about an one on one relationship in some time because it does something just different enough that it sounds fresh. Black seems quite happy to be singing it and gives it a certain zing on the lines that the opener lacked. “Falling in Life” probably tries to cover too many musical bases, but it thankfully doesn’t go on too long in duration and the level of musicianship remains high throughout.  

“D.I.Y.” has a world of emotions swirling through its ballad construction and Black proves that he’s just as adept with this type of songwriting under the soul and R&B umbrella as he is with other types in the same genre. “Only One Man” begins at a much more sumptuous pace than it ends and the differences make for a much more dynamic performance. The second half, in particular, shows a surprising amount of fire primarily pushed by lead guitar playing that whips through the mix like a fanning flame. “Let’s Be Glad”, on the other hand, puts Black squarely in the land of gospel music and he pulls it off admirably. Few of the album’s songs utilize backing singers, but this is naturally one of the most successful instances of their use on Deep Blue. Another fine ballad on Deep Blue is “Don’t Leave Louise” – Black never risks melodramatic nonsense here and the form the song takes makes him dodging its likelihood all the more surprising. Instead, both lyrics and singer are a perfect fit here and Black shows the good sense to resist cluttering the direct, beautiful arrangement. Deep Blue is a vast improvement on Black’s already fine debut The Soul Diaries and shows that this performer’s potential is, perhaps, far vaster than anyone initially understood.  

9 out of 10 stars

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/nickblackmusic

Michael Saulman

Dave Vargo - Burning Through

 

Dave Vargo - Burning Through 

URL: http://davevargomusic.com/ 

Formula serves singer/songwriter Dave Vargo extraordinarily well on his first solo album Burning Through. Based out of the New Jersey area, he definitely cuts the album’s eleven songs in a meat and potatoes mold that eschews musical fireworks in favor of melodic virtues and emotional truth. It is the saving grace elevating Vargo’s performance over pre packaged fluff. There’s more though. He projects vast oceans of feeling with some vocals and his phrasing takes a distinctive approach that puts a figurative face to his finest moments. The production places his voice and the album’s instrumentation in equal prominence with one another and the result is an impressively unified sound that never sounds wayward or uninspired. Dave Vargo’s songs on Burning Through sound like the kind of material that’s waited a lifetime to emerge in this way and some of the songwriting on this release seems to reinforce that view. 

A lot of that fire and chest-thumping energy comes across early. The first song “Come Take Me Home” makes its pleas for the audience’s attention without any pretense or wasted motion and should suck in anyone who hears it. It’s impressive to hear how well Vargo, as a composer, can bring together various elements of light and shade into a credible rock track while surrendering none of his substance as a lyricist. “Good Enough” is an effort of equal value. It move at a little more a slow burn than the opener and shares, arguably, more in common with the album’s later gestures towards rock music without indulging any of the guitar workouts. “Wishing on a Star” is an affecting personal-sounding piece about how our desires and dreams inspire us early and sustain us for years to come. “Finding My Way to You” is, easily, the most outwardly stirring moment on Burning Through and grabs the audience’s attention from the start. It’s never strident or too strong, however, and accomplishes much of its positive effects through another of Vargo’s uncomplicated and often heart clutching melodies. His lead guitar work shines quite brightly on this song.

“Right Now” will bring you more and more into its world with repeated listens. Burning Through is an album that makes a big deal about connecting with the listener, but closer inspection will reveal countless subtleties in these songs. This particular cut does a memorable job of balancing sensitivity with embodying some of the urgency suggested by its title while contrasting it with a comparatively restrained Vargo singing performance. “Twisted and Bent” is, easily, the album’s most naked musical performance, but he is more than up to the task and its storytelling values help the song stand out even more. “Don’t Think Twice” finds him branching out a little musically without ever going too far afield of the album’s mandate and the variations are welcome. Burning Through concludes with the fine “Pieces of My Heart” and its interesting rhythms and tempo changes aid Vargo in getting the lyric over with his audience. Formula is very recognizable here, but Vargo is never content with just reworking some common poses and pandering for our attention.  

8 out of 10 stars 

SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/djvargo 

Dale Butcher

Brent Daniels - Every Road Has a Turn

 

Brent Daniels - Every Road Has a Turn

URL: http://www.brentdanielsofficial.net/

Produced by the respected Robyn Robins, former member of Bob Seger’s Silver Bullet Band, the debut album from Brent Daniels poises this singer and guitarist for big things. The twelve songs on Every Road Has a Turn mix boisterous country-infused rockers with serious, more traditionally minded country tracks with catchy choruses. Daniels’ voice combined with the overall quality of the tunes is a winner in a crowded genre and the few lulls heard during the album are far more matters of taste than any quantifiable flaw. Robins’ production has every bit of the oomph and sparkle listeners will expect and clearly positions Daniels’ voice as the heart of each performance. Every Road Has a Turn feels like a concerted effort to launch Daniels’ career off with a major push and his vocal and interpretative talents deserve such treatment. 

“My First Friday Night” leaves no doubt that Daniels and the team behind him means business. This is as well crafted of a country song as you are likely to hear these days, grounded in universal details of human lives, and carries on the songwriting traditions of classic country music in a thoroughly modern context. The lyrics are sung by a vocalist, likewise, who draws strength, unintended or otherwise, from the genre’s long tradition while having an identifiable stamp of his own to leave on the songs. He’s got a virtually guaranteed hit with the big radio number “My Truck’s Bigger Than Your Truck”. We’ll leave the double meanings of such things for the psychologists to sort out and it isn’t a song that requires a lot of nuance from a very capable singer, but the song is certainly dumb fun that doesn’t demand anything from listeners except having a good time. Despite the “country” subject matter, the song is much close to outright rock than anything else on this debut.

“Love You Down” has a nice mid tempo pace applying just the right amount of force to the performance and it picks up nicely at the chorus. Another enormously appealing part of the performance is the cool confidence Daniels shows with a good emotional shade added for extra measure. He hits a particularly excellent note with the song “Everything About You”, one of the more rhythmic musical tracks on Every Road Has a Turn, and modulates his voice appropriate to help realize the song’s potential. The bluster and brass in earlier songs like “My Truck’s Bigger than Your Truck” completely vanishes on tracks like “Hold On”. Some might hear a certain amount of predictability or imitation in songs like “Hold On”, but listen closely and you’ll hear the differences between Daniels and many of his peers. Great singers bring a certain amount of charisma to their performance that shapes the color and delivery of individual lines. You hear that in the naked vulnerability of Daniels’ phrasing on this song. It’s just as present in the song “Different Just the Same” and Daniels benefits even more there from some of the album’s best lyrics. Every Road Has a Turn’s concluding number “I’ve Been Gone” recalls the classic country songwriting turns of earlier songs like the opener and brings the album to an end with the same confidence defining it. This is one hell of a first effort from Daniels and he’ll be able to build from this work for some time to come. 

9 out of 10 stars 

SPOTIFY: https://play.spotify.com/album/2kMyQ46Gp7Xg7k1PDldWrz?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medium=open 

Joshua Stryde

Nick Dakota - Vision

Nick Dakota - Vision 

URL: https://www.nickdakotamusic.com/ 

Discovered by renowned producer Robyn Robins, thirty year old Michigan native Nick Dakota’s debut album Vision features a dozen songs with many written by top flight Nashville songwriting talent and accompanied by some of the best live and session players that Music City has at its disposal. The album is geared for commercial success, but it reflects a lot of what compromises Dakota’s character as a man. The commercially oriented fare never outright panders to country music fans but, instead, presents musical and lyric elements sure to resonate with the widest of possible country music audiences. The album is a little over-extended with a dozen songs when, perhaps, only ten would do, but the added songs don’t weigh the release down much. Instead, Vision is as solid as of a debut as you’re likely to hear in any genre and, in modern country music, Nick Dakota stands out as one of the most exceptional talents to come along in some time. 

It gets off to a great start with the jewel “We’ll Always Have Paris (Texas)”. This is a slightly elegiac track with a relaxed pace and Dakota shows a great knack for embodying the emotions of the lyric in his voice without ever being hamfisted about it. His turn on “How Cool is That?” possibly makes the whole album. He does a superb job of making the listener see the object of his affection depicted in the lyrics. The down to earth details mix nicely with much bigger, more general emotions and Dakota wraps his voice tightly around the instrumentation with great effect. He turns away from modern textures to recall a much more traditional country sound on the ballad “One Last Request”, but the steel guitar and patient unwinding of the track are far from its only merits. The true highlight of the track is Dakota’s profoundly moving, deeply emotive vocal and he elevates the fine lyrics to another higher level by virtue of his performance. “The Deep End” has a bluesy bite thanks to its insistent electric slide guitar licks and Dakota’s rugged vocal matches up with it very well. The chorus is one of the album’s best. 

“Used” is a fantastic study in musical contrasts that impressively come together. The verses have a light touch, the instruments scattered and leaving a lot of space for the music to breathe, before the energy level spikes for another great chorus. “Rain Down Sunshine” has a a great rock vibe thanks to its combination of acoustic and electric guitars plus authoritative drumming that never plays a note too many. There’s a fabulous uplift in this track, as well, that will likely make it a live favorite. The album’s last song “Sledge Hammer” has an unique sound, slightly crazed bluegrass cut with a dash of rock music, and ends Vision with a colorful exclamation point. Vision establishes Nick Dakota as one of the genre’s promising young talents and songs like the finale pave the way for a wide future. Any lulls in the album are due to there being a few too many songs, particularly mid-tempo rock influenced country tracks, but those lulls don’t compromise the album too much. 

8 out of 10 stars 

I-TUNES: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/vision/id1093348040

Joshua Stryde

Andriana Lehr – Artifacts

Andriana Lehr – Artifacts 

URL: http://andrianalehr.com/ 

Andriana Lehr might originally hail from a small farm in South Dakota, but there’s nothing small town about her songwriting or musical talents. Her latest release Artifacts builds on the promise she exhibited on her 2013 debut Try to Be True while still showing every bit of the influences that have shaped her into the performer she is today. Her decade spent in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, a traditional hotbed for talented singers and songwriters, has honed her potential to a sharp edge and she has both the sound judgment and technique to increasingly realize her artistic ideas. The ten songs on Artifacts never content themselves with a single pose or line of musical adventure. Instead, she fearlessly incorporates unexpected instruments into her template and sets them against unlikely instrumental counterparts. Classical meets country, folk gets a light R&B tinge, and her ear for inventive vocal melodies seems to be unerring.  

“Outrun the Change” puts listeners on notice that a lot has changed and more is in the offing. In some ways, this is a song that covers no new territory – plenty of young artists have written about the accompanying shifts that come with growing older and leaving childhood behind. What separates Lehr from her peers on this track and others is the melancholy she invests this with, but the deeper understanding as well. Her aims are deceptively modest. By merely communicating the realities of her life and inner weather, she seemingly makes music for herself alone, but by communicating these things so directly, the song achieves an universality that reaches far beyond the borders of the autobiographical. This applies to many of the songs on Artifacts.

“Ready To Be”, the album’s second track, is similar in intent, but it takes a little bit wider of a view lyrically. The quasi-shuffle of Steve Goold’s drumming gives Lehr a great rhythmic base to sing over and she takes full advantage of it. The languid unraveling of “Ashes in the Fog” is about, in some respects, finding clarity in a life and world where things aren’t always clear or present themselves as they. How do you deal with that, how do you move on? Lehr finds no real answers, but perhaps those answers are here for listeners to discover and remain unspoken. Ken Wilson’s evocative, haunting dobro playing gives the song a second “vocal” that neatly complements Lehr’s own. The tenor sax making an appearance on “Bright Yellow Lights” gives this track a smoky, late night quality that it might otherwise lack and the reverb-soaked guitar work further accentuates that. Though Lehr brings a bevy of talented collaborators to work with her on this album, none of the tracks are a showcase of their virtuosic skills and, instead, musicians like saxophonist J.P. Delaire and guitarist Bryan Ewald are much more concerned with serving the song. 

“The Expansion of Everything” ends the album on the same daring note that has characterized so much of it. Pedal steel and cell co-exist easily together with Lehr’s folkie acoustic guitar and she delivers another stunning vocal that puts a bright spotlight on her exquisite phrasing. Artifacts is the sort of album that all around music fans will enjoy and continue returning to for some time – it isn’t reined in by silly labels or an unwillingness to take chances. 

9 out of 10 stars 

SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/andriana-lehr 

Montey Zike

Chris Murphy - The Tinker’s Dream

Chris Murphy - The Tinker’s Dream 

URL: http://chrismurphymusic.com/music/ 

The Tinker’s Dream, Chris Murphy’s third album since May of 2016, is a new high in the career of this New York City born songwriter and recording artist. There’s a dozen tracks on his latest album, the vast majority of them instrumentals, and Murphy’s capacity for crafting fine melodies that linger in the memory is virtually unparalleled in the modern music world. They are top shelf in every respect. These aren’t the sort of simple, condensed melodies that hook into listeners at a shallow depth; their genuine catchiness reflects the skill of their composer and the vital urgency with which they are delivered ensures that they aren’t soon forgotten. Murphy’s worked with the cream of the crop in the singer/songwriter genre, but also sterling instrumental talents, and he brings an unique confluence of those two schools to bear on his solo work. The twelve compositions on The Tinker’s Dream soar with virtuosity and solid fundamentals while still speaking to our emotions and experiences.  

Songs like “Connemara Ponies” are especially geared to engage our imaginations. It isn’t a stretch to say that, in reality, Chris Murphy isn’t in the music business at all when he’s performing a song this powerful. Instead, he’s in the transportation business and “Connemara Ponies” moves listeners from the quantifiable world around them and, instead, invokes panoramic landscapes and enormous green vistas where majestic animals run free. The title number picks up some on that same vibe, but it isn’t quite as dramatic and feels a little more earthbound. It does share some of the same energy and it’s a pair of songs like this early on that helps The Tinker’s Dream get off to such an uplifting start. Murphy’s first venture into singer/songwriter territory on the album, “Wicklow”, has a pretty standard but solid lyric that he delivers with just the right amount of relaxed, almost laconic personality. The musical arrangement is never subservient to the singing, lyrics, or vocal melody and Murphy proves just as adept handling this sort of material as ever. 

“Gibraltar 1988” is, arguably, the most spartan musical recording on The Tinker’s Dream and doesn’t front load the song with a bevy of instruments or breathless pacing like many of the other tracks. There’s a definite melancholic note struck here, but it doesn’t dominate the track or its mood. The second stab at the singer/songwriter genre comes with “Cape Horn”, a much more elaborate and ultimately more successful revision of the earlier song “Wicklow”. The similarities between the two song’s lyrical themes are not uniform and Murphy conjures up a much strong first person voice for this outing than the previous one. “Small Wonder” is the final track with lyrics on The Tinker’s Dream and it is a distinctly different trip than the preceding two. This is much more a song about interpersonal relations than the storytelling focus of the earlier tracks and has a much better, more memorable, chorus. The album closes out with “The Hayloft Waltz”, a wonderfully elegant instrumental that ends The Tinker’s Dream on the same upbeat note that started the album.  

8 out of 10 stars  

PURCHASE LINK: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-tinkers-dream/id1164567880 

Scott Wigley