This particular recording was the least likeable to me, but I suppose if I had been in a more somber state while checking it out, I could have gotten into its groove a lot easier.
I felt no particular compulsion to re-listen to the first two tracks (�Walk On� and �Goodbye Love�), because they didn�t really go anywhere, musically, during their four-minute-plus duration, kind of like some of those endlessly repetitive Neil Young songs, although the differing rhythm patterns of these two songs and, indeed, throughout the CD, display his versatility in playing a variety of styles.
Michael then gets to his strong point � composing original blues cuts, i.e. �Trouble Boy Blues� (an Appalachian-type ode to the legendary local rock band of the same name), the manic slide guitar meltdown of �Let Down�, and the ironic rural tone, with harmonica accompanying guitar, of �Summer City Blues�, the latter being an accurate portrait of some of Hamilton�s seedier neighbourhoods � �Pretty things with belly rings scream like a cicada sings and all the boys and their tattoos, they all got the summer city blues�. �Graveyard Walk� is a world-weary campfire song as maudlin as its title and it�s delivered in a manner befitting the lyrics. Like most of his simpler compositions, the thoughtful lyrics offset the straightforward strumming. The bonus track on this recording was a fast and furious version of Marcy Playground�s �Sex and Candy�, which I liked very much.
Considering this was his third collection of original songs released in 2004, with another 8-10 songs released six months later, there�s no disputing that Famous Framus is a man on a musical mission. |
