CD Review: Enda Reilly - Oxygen 21

Enda Reilly - Oxygen 21
2008, Enda Reilly 

There is a fine, fine line between brilliance and insanity.  The fact that Enda Reilly appears to surf both rims of the pipeline on Oxygen 21 is neither frightening nor surprising.  Reilly leaves nothing off the table stylistically, and does not appear to shy away from any particular subject matter either. 

Oxygen 21 is a celebration of what we breathe every day, with references to the trees provides it and the windmills that may harness it.  The quasi-cabaret, quasi-bluegrass arrangement is unique and interesting.  Strangers On A Train discusses an erstwhile pact made with a stranger (think Throw Momma From The Train).  It's humorous and well-arranged.  Just when you're starting to think "novelty record", Enda Reilly busts open a song like Hidin' Away, a beautiful and poignant song based on some serious acoustic guitar work.  Reilly returns to the lighter side somewhat with I'm Doin' Fine Just The Way I Am.

Somewhere in here you realize that Enda Reilly isn't a comedian, he's more of a musical magician who happens to hit the funny bone on occasion (ala Lyle Lovett, Randy Newman).  Other highlights include the stream of consciousness Hear The Cries, the bizarre Nut In The Hut and I'm Not Crazy ; and Why We Can't Live In Peace.  We even get a glimpse of Reilly's live sound in the last track, Henry.

Enda Reilly has an amazing voice.  It's a clear tenor with flashes of warm baritone and amazingly clear tone.  Reilly handles the guitar very well and appears to have a knack for well-written songs with just a bite of humor.  Oxygen 21 is an absolute treat that will make a permanent home in your CD or MP3 collection.  So is it brilliance or insanity?  You can argue about it, I'm going to go listen to the CD again.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Enda Reilly at www.endareilly.com.  You can purchase a copy of Oxygen 21 at www.cdbaby.com/cd/endareilly.  You can also purchase downloads from Amazon MP3, Rhapsody, iTunes, Napster and other such sites.

CD Review: Alex Woodard - Alex Woodard

Alex Woodard – Alex Woodard
2008, Woodshack Music

Alex Woodard sends a message in the opening notes of his self-titled debut. The CD starts out with the plaintive wail of a pedal steel for about two seconds before it’s stomped on and kicked to the curb by distorted country-rock guitar. Whether it’s an ousting of the old, or just the briefest nod of where country came from, Alex Woodard suggests he won’t be bound by the old. This act of rebellion from the former surfer and childhood actor is a sign of things to come in the music. Woodard doesn’t stay pegged to one genre on his debut, Alex Woodard. He bridges the gaps between Rock, Country and America just as easily as he might surf the pipelines of the Southern California Coast.

The absolute highlight of this album is Reno, the duet with Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins. This is one of the most traditional country sounding songs on the album, and Woodard’s voice works with Watkins’ so well you’d think they’ve been singing together for years. Other highlights include The Table, Photograph, Beautiful Now, and the touching Heather’s Prayer.

Alex Woodard is a talent. He has an easy sound (vocally) that goes down like sugar water. He’s a plus songwriter and I suspect he’ll continue to develop that talent as time goes on. Alex Woodard (the album) is a very strong debut, and should be a sign of great things to come!

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

To learn more about Alex Woodard, check out www.alexwoodard.com. Alex Woodard arrives on August 19, 2008. Here’s a treat! If you pre-order the album through http://www.adrenalinemusicgroup.com/CD_AlexWoodard_PreSale.php, Alex Woodard will write a song about you (plus you’ll get some other neat stuff). Pre-orders must occur before August 19th. How cool is that? (Now if we can just get him to write about the reviewers... :)

CD Review: Kari Tieger - Nos Mots + 3

Kari Tieger –   Nos Mots / Zazen / En Francais, S’il te plait / Touch Of Magic  

Kari Tieger is a singer, composer and producer from Rhode Island who is bilingual for French and English.  Her compositions have been on everything from A&E to the O! Network to MTV.  She has a very eclectic style that encompasses pop, Broadway, classical and jazz.  She shows a dramatic flair in her writing that is at times inspired.  Today we are checking out four of her recordings.

In general, Tieger has a very distinctive soprano voice, and is as authentic a Francophone singer as you’ll find in the coffeehouses and concert halls of Paris.  She has a very Broadway flair about her at times, and writes somewhat in this vein.  You can close your eyes and picture many of her vocal pieces sung under the proscenium at The Winter Garden in New York City or another such venue.  While her vocals are strong, composition is her bread and butter.  Tieger seems to dance her away around the staves and finds a way to coax magic from the mundane.  Like all composers she occasionally misses the bar, but even the misses are interesting.



Nos Mots (2008, Kari Tieger)Nos Mots

is Tieger’s most recent release.  It started out as a collection of poems of her friends that she set to music.  After recording the five initial tracks for what was to be an EP, Tieger added some compositions of her own and Vos Mots became Nos Mots.  Highlights here include Brouillard, Sonatine pour violon et piano and Tout de meme.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)



Zazen  (2007, Kari Tieger)

Zazen is essentially a practical guide to Zen Buddhist meditation, with narration by Tieger.  The concept and text is a collaboration between Tieger and French Buddhist Monk Eric Lagarrigue.  It is relaxing, and instructive if you are interested in Zen meditation, but is the weakest of the four discs reviewed here.

Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5)



En Francais, S’il te plait (2001, Kari Tieger)

En Francais, S’il te plait is a French romantic’s dream: twenty-three gothic French songs about love and romance.  Sung entirely in French, this album will be a tough listen for some, but it is a perfect for any true lover of French language and culture, and should be must listening for any intermediate or advanced student of the language.  Tieger’s theatricality pays off in a big way on En Francais.  Highly recommended.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)



Touch Of Magic (1998, Tiger Sound)

Touch Of Magic is recorded in both French and English, depending on the song.  This is theatrics at its best.  Tieger’s mix of songwriting and performance create a kind of alchemy here that is better heard than described.  This is where to start if you want to get to know Kari Tieger’s music.  This is Kari Tieger’s watershed album.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Kari Tieger at www.karitieger.com.  To purchase copies of her albums, please click on the links below:

Nos Mots
Zazen
En Francais, S’il te plait
Touch Of Magic

CD Review: Tony Doggett - A Moment In Time

Tony Doggett - A Moment In Time
2008, Tony Doggett

Tony Doggett has done at least two things very well in his life. He’s lived his life in service to others and he’s made music. Spending several years in the third world helped shape Doggett’s world view, and with A Moment In Time, Doggett works hard to document how he worked to give some of those gifts back to himself through new connections, introspection and spiritual growth.

A Moment In Time opens with Since I Took A Look At You, a sweet love song with American flourishes and great harmonies. This is potentially a minor hit in the country/Americana genres. The title track is an upbeat pop/country tune that will get stuck in your head. Part Of Your World is a heart-on-the-sleeve ballad that is wedding first dance material. Irresistible is a pleasant change of pace from the unabashed trend of love ballads on A Moment In Time, until you realize it's a love ballad with a latin beat.

Tony Doggett is a guy full of love songs, which is okay because he is a more than competent songwriter. Even the rockabilly Walking With My Baby has a strong romantic element to it. Other highlights include Still Here With You, Say Yes and You.

A Moment In Time is a veritable mix tape of Tony Doggett tunes. It will be a little much for some readers, but for the true romantics and Harlequin readers this is an ideal album. This is also a musician's album, as Doggett's song construction and execution as a writer/performer is flawless. It would be nice to hear a little more variety in subject matter, but it's hard to argue with the quality here. A Moment In Time is a definite keeper.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn about Tony Doggett at www.tonydoggett.com, where you can purchase a copy of A Moment In Time. You can also pick up a copy at www.cdbaby.com/cd/tonydoggett.

CD Review: Will Tang - Everything Changes

Will Tang - Everything Changes
2006, Zen Music

Will Tang is a musical renaissance man. His heritage (half British, half Chinese) imbued him with a wealth of musical styles and influences to choose from, and from all indications he has made the most of those opportunities. Tang made his first splash living in Hong Kong, where he started out doing session work for Andy Lau and Jacky Chan, and even playing with Simon LeBon. This evolved into a recording contract and touring with his own band to 10,000 seat theaters.

Later on Tang would decide to try his luck in the British music scene with its myriad of sounds and influences. In 2007, William Tang released his fifth album, Everything Changes. This is a fairly straightforward acoustic rock album from Tang, and very much out of character with his past recordings. Nevertheless it is an incredibly strong recording that you need to hear.

William Tang brings an easy grace to every song he touches. His performances on Everything Changes sound effortless. On My Way is a lovely song that displays the hope of a lost love. The Other Side is a gritty blues-rock tune that will blow you away. Be sure also to check out Red City Blues, a reggae tune with some minor blues influences that is quite a treat. Other highlights include Something Special, Stories, Love Bites and Sun Down. Sun Down allows Tang to show off his blues harmonica skills.

Everything Changes is a gorgeous album full of great acoustic pop rock and blues tunes. Will Tang is the sort of multi-faceted talent that finds a way to stick around for a long time. Be sure to check out Everything Changes. It's a treat you won't forget.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Will Tang at www.willtang.co.uk, where you can purchase a copy of Everything Changes. Also check out www.myspace.com/williamtang for streaming audio you won’t find on the CD (like a Led Zeppelin cover on harmonica).

CD Review: Vertigo Nation - Emigate

Vertigo Nation – Emigrate
2008, Vertigo Nation

Vertigo Nation is sort of a hybrid rock/techno band, ala Garbage. Lead Vocalist Wickey should not be mistaken for a Shirley Manson clone, however. Her voice is both stronger and more expressive than Manson's, and is one of the high points of Emigrate. Emigrate starts with It's Your Life, a song that opens in energetic fashion but loses steam part way through. You Can't Get Me continues the energy drain. Sign reinvigorates briefly, but the general trend here is that the cross of techno with rock saps the music of some of its inherent energy. The songs on Emigrate really want to rock, but become mired in the synths and programmed beats.

While I am all for breaking down boundaries between genres in the name of creativity, losing the vibrant energy involved in the creation process does little for the listeners. There is real talent and potential here, and I would guess that the energy is there should you see Vertigo Nation in a live environment, but it just does not translate to CD. Emigrate is a collection of what almost was, with flashes of what could be thrown in for good measure. This is a band, however to watch for the future.

Rating: 2 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Vertigo Nation at www.myspace.com/vertigonation. You can download Emigrate from iTunes. I couldn't find a link anywhere online to purchase a hard copy CD, but if you contact the band through their MySpace page I'm sure they'll be happy to help you out.

CD Review: Neal Fox - Now It's Personal

Neal Fox - Now It's Personal
2008, Wire Duck Records

Neal Fox has a talent for making lemonade from lemons (or tomato juice from tomatoes). The man who helped score two of the Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes movies has led something of a charmed cursed life. Neal Fox's first record contract was with Polydor's Event Label. His release Mancini & Fox (with Gus Mancini) produced a charted single. Fox was next signed to Columbia Records by the legendary Clive Davis. Before Fox ever got off the ground with Columbia Davis was fired and no recording ever materialized. Fox then moved to RCA, released A Painting, which included the top-ten hit In The Jungle. As Fox's band was readying to tour the President of RCA was fired, and the tour never happened.

Moving on, Fox had a prize-winning career as a writer of jingles, promo spots and television show themes (including CBS Saturday Morning and The CBS Evening News with Dan Rather). Fox then moved into writing musical scores and finally returned to rock and roll in his home studio. After transplanting himself from California to Sunny Florida, Fox released Now It's Personal in 2008.

Keep in mind that Fox is one of those guys whom everything he touches turns to gold, even if it blows up five minutes later (not in this case). Fox is an incredibly talented and nuanced songwriter, easily adaptable from rock to jazz to blues. Now It's Personal is full of amazing songs, with real life lyrics, great melodies and well constructed arrangements. There's also this occasional flash of a wicked sense of humor that is as disarming as it is biting. Songs like What The Hell Were You Thinking, Sheep and Swank-ay will have you chuckling even as you're tapping your toes. A Cold Day Is Coming is an epic tune that sounds like it should reside on a 1970's classic rock album. We're All Gonna Be There closes out Now It's Personal on a melancholy note that is one of the most beautiful songs on the album.

Neal Fox continues to do what he's always done. Tell real stories about real life in musical packages that are pleasing to the ear and as varied as a Godiva sampler. Now It's Personal is a must-own album, particularly for fans of singer/songwriters and adult contemporary rock. Don't pass this one by, folks.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Neal Fox at www.wireduck.com or www.myspace.com/nealfox. You can purchase a copy of Now It’s Personal at www.cdbaby.com/cd/nealfox6.