Canadian singer/songwriter Greg MacPherson is called by his label "the new champion of a songwriting tradition stretching back to Woody Guthrie and including voices like Joe Strummer and Bruce Springsteen", and I can definitely see that.? Now, sadly, I don't like it, but I can listen to it.? I really like this label and I admire their ethics and their willingness to release whatever the fuck they want with no ties to genre or fads, but this CD is simply not for me.? It's basically quirky and moody rock ?n' roll with smooth singing that has a bit of a dry rasp.? Most of the music is pretty chilled out in overall volume, but does have an energetic zest happening as far as tempo, vocal arrangements, etc.? The guitars are never all that distorted, so the basslines have some room to thump away and the spaciousness kind of gives the songs a somber sort of undercurrent at times, even when they get a little catchier or more openly melodic.? "Hotel Motel" is just acoustic guitar and vocals with very faint percussive elements, and that approach almost makes more sense for these songs since the vocal performance is kind of in the leading role for the entire album, and none of the music necessarily needs a full band or anything. "California" is slower and much darker than the other tracks, with crawling clean guitars and soft singing with sparse bass and percussion (though, hell, everything's pretty sparse in this one), lending a more emotional and moving slant to the track and certainly making for my favorite moment of the entire disc. "The Sun Beats Down" is similar but lets the drums take a little more hold and uses piano rather than guitars, but the end result doesn't even come close to "California" for me. I have no real issues with the production at all. It's nice and warm, there's a lot of density going on, it's fairly clear, etc. The instrumentation could maybe use a little more brightness here or there, and the guitar distortion could be a little louder and more rocked out, but I think the vocals sound pretty damn solid as is. Overall the layout is kind of inconsistent. I think the digipack looks pretty bland and weak, but there's a lot of nice photography in the booklet and some of the cleaner arrangements look very nice, so it's a tossup. Lyrically the material's kind of all over the place, though it does carry a consistent aesthetic. Passages here and there seem more pointed and less abstract, but the approach is definitely a fairly open one. "Spin around backwards, Same storyline, Hands against the glass, Too old to be young, I'm so restless, I'm sold to the sidewalk..." I don't know, I think the guy's a fairly decent songwriter, but none of this stuff really catches me and stylistically it's not something I'd gravitate towards. That's not say I wouldn't like this if it was brilliant (but it comes across as slightly boring to be honest), nor is that to say that I dislike it, but I'm pretty indifferent. It's a matter of personal taste, I guess.
[G7 Welcoming Committee]
Running time - 48:33, Tracks: 11
[Notable tracks: Hotel Motel, California]
G7 Welcoming Committee Records - http://www.g7welcomingcommittee.com
