Charity Chapman - Gordon The Northern

Charity Chapman – Gordon The Northern
2006, Charity Chapman

Charity Chapman is just this gal, ya know?  Granted, she’s an incredibly talented songwriter…  and she has this incredibly sweet and vaguely smoky voice that makes you stop what you’re doing and find out just who that is singing on the radio.  But the young woman who lived her early live in Pensacola, Florida and then finished growing up in the verdant valleys of Colorado is as down to earth as they come.  It’s one of the reasons her songwriting is so clear and honest; there are no pretensions with Charity Chapman.  What you see, and what you hear, is what you get.  Its why, in spite of remaining an Indie songwriter and performer, she’s seen her music featured on Oprah, Felicity, Ugly Betty, and both the US and UK versions of The X Factor.  Chapman’s EP, Gordon The Northern, is a collection of old and new songs that are guaranteed to impress, and are likely to begin a long artist/listener relationship.

The EP opens with “If I Could Fly”, a song with many levels.  A gorgeous love song with a vaguely dark temperament, it is also a song of hope.  The song was featured in season 4 of Felicity, and has the distinction of being the tune that Keri Russell’s character graduated to.  The mixed sense of unrequited love and dreams breaking upon new shore is dizzying, but perfectly maps the collision of old and new desires and hope that are the watershed of adolescence on adulthood.  The song succeeds on the genuine sense of standing at the precipice of a new world, but looking back with the door to an old world not yet closed.  Chapman herself sounds very much like Canadian chanteuse Maren Ord, and ingratiates herself with her sweet, sweet voice. 

“Free” is an intriguing declaration of a movable self.  The song has a solid melody, and is packaged in an arrangement that is mellow on the surface but full of a deep energy.  Chapman’s voice shows many colors and shadings here, and it’s easy to get wrapped up in the sound of her voice.  “In My Room” is a song of heartbreak; of searching for an answer where none is to be found.  Chapman’s essential question, why he walked away, seems to pale in the face of the search itself.  The pain here is palpable, with a dramatic sense that is theatric in presentation and yet organic and real.  This mix is incredibly difficult to find; not a matter of craft but of honesty in the songwriting process.  Chapman maintains a strong pop sensibility without sounding like she’s trying to write a pop song, an impressive achievement in and of itself.

Gordon The Northern is an intriguing perspective on the artistic development of a songwriter left to her own devices.  Charity Chapman opens with her most well-known song, and then moves on to two more recent tunes.  You can hear the depth and complexity of her talent and of her intellect sprout before your very ears on Gordon The Northern.  What’s most intriguing is that throughout the process, she never loses the twin roots of her talent: A delicious ear for melody and an integrity and honesty in her songwriting that is compelling.  Chapman manages to have it all on Gordon The Northern; she is an artist who is creating meaningful and aesthetically pleasing art that just happens to be commercially viable.  Take one listen, and you’ll be hooked.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Charity Chapman at www.charitychapman.com or www.myspace.com/charitychapman. 

Book Review: Nick Cave - The Death Of Bunny Munro

Nick Cave - The Death Of Bunny Munro
2009, Faber & Faber

Nick Cave has been singer, songwriter and spiritual leader for The Birthday Party, The Bad Seeds and Grinderman; one wonders why he would even feel the need to write novels. It turns out he's actually pretty good at it. His first book, And The Ass Saw An Angel, debuted in 1989 to rave critical reviews. The Australian-born resident of Brighton returns 20 years later with his sophomore effort, The Death Of Bunny Munro. Bunny Munro is a post-modern Willie Loman with the self-destructive tendencies of Holden Caufield and the hubris of Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men).

We meet Munro in the midst of his life's work, ripping innocence and self-respect from the female beauty product-buying populace of England with his magnetic eyes and arrogant swagger. Munro goes through ladies trousers like a pig through slop. Munro, however, is on the precipice of a stunning fall from grace. His wife clinically depressed and tired of Bunny’s Philandering, commits suicide in gruesomely deliberate fashion, making it very clear in the process why. Bunny instantly becomes primary caretaker of his son, Bunny Jr., and the great swoon is on. Bunny Munro has always had a predilection for drugs and alcohol, but his consumption increases in direct proportion to the decline of Munro’s judgment and control. He begins to lose his savoir-faire with the ladies and his place in the world. To further it all, it becomes readily apparent that Munro is so immersed himself that he is utterly incapable of taking care of Bunny Jr.

Bunny takes his son on the road to show him the ropes of selling, which for Bunny Jr. amounts to sitting in the family car and waiting for Dad to score and then score. This works well for Bunny until his dead wife starts dropping in on his extra-curricular sessions, as well as showing herself and then visiting Bunny Jr. Hanging over all of this is Bunny’s Dad, ill with terminal cancer and as mean as a junk yard dog on a hunger strike. If you’ve followed all of this thus far, you’ll understand that The Death of Bunny Munro is a mess; A glorious, hilarious mess. Nick Cave has constructed a character so cartoonish he has to be real, and his story-telling style is more like he’s telling you over a beer than writing it down for you to read later.

In the end Munro is a character you hate to like, but there’s a simpering humanity to the man that catches your sympathy. You realize that Munro is, more than anything else, a product of his upbringing. The cancer that is killing his old man isn’t nearly as powerful as the social one he passed on to this son. Bunny Jr. there’s still hope for, and perhaps that is the reason for all of this to occur. Either way, The Death Of Bunny Munro an entertaining story that won’t play well on the Oprah book list but would probably make a wonderful short miniseries for HBO or Cinemax. Nick Cave scores again!

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Nick Cave and The Death of Bunny Munro at http://www.thedeathofbunnymunro.com/ or http://www.nick-cave.com/. You can purchase The Death Of Bunny Munro from Amazon.com as a hardcover, an audiobook CD read by Cave or as an audio download.

Review: Michael Whalen - The Road Of Ghosts

Michael Whalen - The Road Of Ghosts
2009, Michael Whalen Music

Michael Whalen might be a name you’ve never heard, but you’ve heard his music. Whalen has over 500 television scores and several dozen short and feature film credits to his name. Whalen wrote the opening theme to Good Morning America, and has written for Oprah Winfrey, Martha Stewart, As The World Turns and Inside Edition, to name a few. He won an Emmy and BMI award for his score of PBS’ America At The Crossroads miniseries, and also scored PBS’ Slavery And The Marking Of America. If you haven’t heard any of these, perhaps the commercials he’s scored for clients such as Apple, Coca-Cola, Disney and Nike have touched your consciousness. In any case, Whalen is prolific. Much of this writing is done from the shadows as far as the public is concerned, but Whalen steps out of the shadows with a solo album, The Road Of Ghosts.

The Road Of Ghosts opens with Original Sin, a prayer for forgiveness in song. The arrangement is decent, piano-driven soft-rock. Whalen sounds a bit like a cross between Elton John and Steven Curtis Chapman here. Vanilla is a love song that ends up sounding a bit too forced to really work but has some nice thematic elements in the melody. The Road Of Ghosts is about being haunted in one's dreams by regrets; it's a powerful tune that turns into a declaration to no longer be so afflicted.

Blink Of An Eye finds Whalen sounding very much like Elton John, both vocally and in piano style. All Of Me takes another stab at the love song genre and works well; there's a feeling like the song take a bit too long to get where it's going, but the sentiment is strong (and well-written) and the arrangement fits perfectly. I Am is a song about believing in yourself and making your own destiny; starting with what you think and believe. It's a strong, positive message in a mellow pop/rock arrangement that's a bit too positive and too mellow for pop radio but would do well on the Adult Contemporary circuit. The song also reminds us that sight is as much about what we're ready to see as it is about what's there. The Road Of Ghosts closes with Seasons Of Light, a positive song that just doesn't seem to have the energy of its own convictions. There's a vaguely spiritual element here blended with a love song, but it comes across as fairly cliché.

The Road Of Ghosts is a bit uneven but shows a decent songwriter and performer with middle-of-the-road adult-oriented pop potential. Fans of Delilah's show will likely enjoy Michael Whalen's material, and there's a distinct spiritual/Judeo-Christian ethic at work on the EP, but it just didn't grab hold of me as a listener.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Michael Whalen at http://www.michaelwhalen.com/ or www.myspace.com/michaeljwhalen. Michael Whalen’s website lists a July 21, 2009 release date for The Road of Ghosts, but as of publication I could find no online availability of either CD or downloads of the album. Keep checking Whalen’s website for availability.

Anj Granieri Volunteer Fundraising Request

Anj Granieri is an accomplished singer/songwriter, and has even landed a gig this year writing for Oprah Winfrey. We reviewed her album When Grey Blushes last year and in the process identified an artist who deserves your attention. At this time Ms. Granieri could also use your help. She has decided to take a step back from the music world this summer and go volunteer her time and effort by living/working in an Ophanage in Valea Screzzi, Romania. In order to fund her "Volunteer Placement Fee", airfare and supplies, Granieri needs to raise $3,000.00. You can read more about her planned trip and make donations in any amount at http://www.firstgiving.com/anjgranieri. All donations are tax deductible, and in this case it will be funding a real live person to go and help real live people. There will be no question, as there are in all of the appeals you see on late night television, or where the money goes and what will be done with it.

So be sure to make a donation to support Ms. Granieri's volunteer work, and while you're at it, check out When Grey Blushes, it will also be very much worth your time.

Review: Ecotone Refugees - Water Is Rising

Ecotone Refugees - Water Is Rising
2008, Echo Orange Music

Ecotone Refugees come barreling out of the vibrant Brooklyn Indie rock scene with a sound that is reminiscent of Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd and Queens Of The Stone Age without really sounding like any of them. A modern rock psychedelic band with a shredder on lead guitar and a vocalist who sounds like Ozzy Osbourne had a child with Eddie Vedder is going to attract attention, and Ecotone Refugees definitely attract attention. Their debut album, Water Is Rising was released in 2008 and makes quite an impression.

Ecotone Refugees are a conglomerate of true music professions. Johnny Young lends vocals, guitar, Moog and keys. Outside of the band he is also a producer and composer who has provided music for the Oprah Winfrey show. Sean Egan (guitar, Moog, bass) is a shredder in the first degree and loves to play with dynamics and time signatures. David Weise chips in on vocals and bass, and drummer Michael Galante is a Berklee College of Music grad. Suffice it to say Ecotone Refugees aren't your typical rock bruiser. It's no surprise then how varied and complex the songs on Water Is Rising truly are. The album opens with Marathon, an Ozzy-era Sabbath-esque rocker built on some very interesting guitar work. Wake Up is a big, straight up rocker with Moog effects and an anti-war message. This is probably the least compelling song on the album, but still a decent listen.

Losing Your Faith is the sort of heavy rocker that would have ruled AOR radio in the early 1980's. Psychedelic bridges and big driving guitars give this song a distinctive sound that stands out. Lost In You is an interesting mix. There's a pop sensibility in the hook-laden song (even if the hooks are anti-pop). The chorus is classic punk rock and the song is a clear dichotomy that reflects the divergent sounds Ecotone Refugees pursue. Cyclone is a raucous old-school rock tune based on a classic Moog sound and surf-style guitar. B-Squad Brothers is feel good Rock N Roll in a classic 1960's format. Water Is Rising is pure psychedelia, Pink Floyd style. Nine and-a-half minutes of pure rock ambience.

Ecotone Refugees march musical ground that's been covered for years and yet they seem to find a way to sound fresh and new even while paying tribute to some of the biggest names in Classic Rock. Water Is Rising has the same sort of iconic feel about it that Pearl Jam had in their early days. If you love great classic rock sounds with a modern edge, then Water Is Rising (and Ecotone Refugees) is for you.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Ecotone Refugees at www.myspace.com/ecotonerefugees. You can purchase a copy of Water Is Rising at www.cdbaby.com/cd/ecotonerefugees.