| CD REVIEW (This review has also been published at www.701.com) |
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| When I first tossed this CD onto my computer (even though there�s a disclaimer saying it wasn�t designed for that media), I thought it was a female singing. Upon reading the press release, I discovered it was 20-something Christopher Conley and his similarly-aged bandmates, David Soloway (guitar), Eben D�Amico (bass) and Pete Parada (drums), from Princeton, New Jersey. These guys have apparently been playing and selling records since they were barely teenagers and were included on both the Pop Disaster tour (with Blink-182, Weezer and Green Day) and the 2001 Vagrant America Tour with (Dashboard Confessional), as well as receiving rotation on L.A.�s KROQ and MTV. While the songs themselves range between commercial garage-rock bangers (in a Nirvana sort of way) and soothing ballads, Chris Conley�s vocal tone was sometimes a turn-off for me � not high enough to be considered glam and not low enough to complement the heavy-duty bass and often relentlessly uninspired drumming. Especially in the anthemic stadium songs, the drums were not only redundant but actually detracted from the otherwise memorable compositions, although I have to admit they didn�t sound quite so bad when I finally did listen to the CD on a proper stereo. Contrary to Mr. Conley�s statement that he searches for words that fit the cadence of the song, I didn�t find there was a good vocal flow at all in some of the songs � it�s alternately choppy or dragged-out, like that of a child�s first attempts at singing. Perhaps it�s a unique style he has adopted as his own. Having long grown weary of repetitive �jock rock� songs that focus solely on power chords, bass and drums, I preferred the sweet melodies and quirky rhythms of �monkey�, �she� and the final two tracks, �Wednesday the third� and �Tomorrow Too Late�. The press release mentions a terrifying incident where their van skidded on a patch of ice and rolled down an embankment, causing some serious injuries for both Chris and David but didn�t stop them from rejoining their tour in Seattle shortly thereafter. I know firsthand what that kind of incident is like, so I give them full credit for shaking off what could have caused a permanent aversion to road touring! That�s the old rock�n�roll spirit! |
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