Sacha Mullin Duplex Review by Gary Hill Sacha Mullin is a Chicago based musician. In addition to other work, he's been part of the band Cheer-Accident. That, by itself, might have landed this under progressive rock. The thing is, there are a lot of ties to modern prog here. There is also a definite left-of-center vibe to it. Those things also contribute to the progressive rock label. Beyond that, though, there is a major 80s pop music leaning, most closely to things like Morrissey's music. The singing on this is quite adventurous. Overall, this set is probably not for everyone, but it is sure please quite a few people.
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Track by Track Review
Intro
Fast paced and freaky, this has all kinds of waves of weird vocals over the top of intense drumming. It's a short cut that's odd, but yet compelling.
Crow
Drums bring this into being. Piano comes over the top along with some other elements. The vocals are introduced over this backdrop. There is more of a modern prog texture here along with some stuff that calls to mind 80s music in a lot of ways. This gets quite intense at times.
Dive
This cut is a bit on the mellower side. Imagine if someone like Morrissey did music that was more decidedly progressive rock oriented, but in a weird kind of way. This is tastefully twisted, yet still accessible at the same time. Around the three and a half minute mark it shifts out to something a bit like modern King Crimson with some of that 80s element added to it. I can make out some Todd Rundgren, too.
Eureka
First off, the title of this is actually in Japanese, but the characters won't work in the title slot of the site, so I've used the English translation. I think the actual title ("????") will work in this section so, there it is. This is full of dense layers of sound working around one another. It's a classy stuff that combines a proggy electronic texture with that 80s sensibility.
Questions Weird waves of keyboards open this. The cut works out from there to something closer to folk rock. It has some intriguing layers of sound built over the top leaning it more toward the proggy end of the spectrum, though. There are also some healthy amounts of Americana here.
Dream Ain't Dead
This might be my favorite cut here. It has a great accessible element to it. Yet, the layers of sound that are built into it are complex and intriguing. This is almost equal amounts of 80s pop sound and left-of-center prog.
Applejack
While there is no big reimagining of the sound here, this is another effective piece of music. It's perhaps a bit catchier and more mainstream than some of the rest.
Fools (Are We)
The sound that brings this in is nearly pure jazz. That concept holds it for a while. When it moves out from there, though, it gets into some of the most artsy, proggy stuff here. This is an intriguing piece and brings some definite variety to the table.
White Hot Room
Piano and the voice open this. The cut works out from there with a bit of a jazz element. Some strings are added to the mix as it moves forward. The arrangement gets more powered up as it works forward, but the basic instrumental configuration remains unchanged.
Accept Treasure
This has a lot more of the 80s sound than some of the other music. It's solid stuff for sure, but nota huge change. It is one of the more mainstream cuts here.
