Best album I've heard this year, no danger.
Neurosonic is Canadian Wunderkind, Jason Darr. He came to rock via techno / dance. Our gain, their loss.
You can still hear the techno, but thankfully the dance mentality has been jettisoned.
Listening to Darr's self produced solo debut,
'Drama Queen' is like mainlining into a world where rock, rap, Beatle-esque pop, orchestras, psychedelia, industrial sized guitars and explosive rhythms have teamed up together with the hippest of producers and recorded 11 of the best songs they could find.
Opener '
So Many People' is a fiery, sharp edged polemic on the state of contemporary pop. It rocks bigtime. Keyboards, bass heavy rhythms and high octane riffing fuel a firing-on-all-six vocal. Powerful stuff.
First single, '
Are Solar' is an absolute gem. It's like Trent Reznor found some better tunes and a sunnier disposition. Keyboards float around. Darr raps and rocks through bulldozing guitars and a tune with a granite surface but underneath is all pop glitter.
The sublimely melodic '
I Will Always Be Your Fool' opens in the bittersweet style of one of those Fab Four fixated bands like The Umajets or The Grays, then mutates into a hulking, hard rock bruiser with a soaring chorus and a pounding, kitchen sink orchestral arrangement.
Darr's unrelenting aural assault never gives an inch. Even as we approach the last couple of tracks, where the fillers usually lurk, the sonics are slick and sound, frequently threatening us - as with the the pounding bass and drum assault of '
Bonehead', or
'So Now You Know's dark tale of love and loss - with a severe case of sensory overload.
Closing track, '
For The Boy', particularly is an object lesson in how to do it and get it right, expertly weaving strands of acoustic guitars, dancing strings and crashing percussion around a wistful melody and a poignant, heartfelt lyric.
No question, Darr knows where he's going and seems in a hurry to get there. The journey should be worth it.
Written by
Brian Sunday, November 19, 2006
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