There is quite a range of music here. There are things that land near jazz. Other things are bluesy. There is world music on the disc. Yet, there is also a lot of modern pop music here. This is an effective set that manages to keep varying things throughout.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2015 Volume 2 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
The Haunting
I love the energized jazz jam that is this song. The vocals are great, but the rather left of center music works well to drive it, too.
Think You Do There is a bouncy kind of world music element here. This is fun stuff.
Clap Hands With a bluesy soulful vibe to it, I like this a lot. It’s got a really meaty sound. It’s very much a jazz tune. It’s also very cool.
Carnival Combining jazz and café music, this is an energetic and fun number that’s quite effective.
Twisted Soul More of a modern pop type song, this is a nice shift. It works pretty well.
Diggin' A Ditch This combines the earlier sounds with the more modern elements we heard in the title track. It’s another effective piece.
Lucid Lover I love the groove that the rhythm section creates here. This has a lot of jazzy blues in the mix. It’s also got plenty of modern pop music built into it. It’s another strong tune on a disc that’s full of them.
Interlude (Saturday Night) This is literally just an odd little interlude.
Sunday Morning Set very much in old time music, this is a little strange, but still quite good.
Cry Me A River Much more of a modern pop song, this one is good. The vocal arrangement works pretty well, but I wouldn’t consider this to be one of the better pieces here.
Someday This high energy jam is very much a jazz tune. It’s also quite a good number.
Ruins
There is quite a bit of jazz and blues in this fun rocker. A scat singing section really brings that home clearly.
The Simple Life The closer is another journey into old time world music. It’s not really my kind of thing, but it has its charms.
