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Written
by Larry Robertson, posted by blog admin
Vocalist
Jeff Crandall of Swallows debuts as his solo alter-ego J. Briozo and drops a
varied, exciting debut with Deep in the
Waves. Featuring an eclectic mixture
of upbeat, rocking tunes heavy on the guitar to more ambient, contemplative
compositions, there’s something for everybody here. Though featuring some of his Swallows’ band
mates; Jeff still takes his music into several new directions throughout and
comes up with a winner of a record that gets in your head and stays there.
Opener
“Blind” is a layered dream-pop piece with mellow guitar work, a heavy emphasis
on keyboards textures and rhythmic restraint while Crandall croons in a
breathy, vibrato-rich voice that works up some superb hooks. The end result reminds of Radiohead’s
trippiest work and gently flows into the acoustic strum of the title
track. His vocals take a bluesy turn on
this one as the music continues to build itself up slowly and sturdily by
adding percussive crashes, multi-tracked guitar and chamber strings. “Beautiful Mess” features some of the
record’s most expressive, passionate lyrics playing out across gorgeous acoustic
melodies and subtle electric guitar fuzz (that delivers some stellar leads much
later on). A rousing chorus that
benefits from a three-part vocal harmony and some subtle cello/violin
accompaniment; each flourish combining together for a delectable whole. As the tune crosses the midpoint it kicks up
a steady drum beat and some deep bass grooves, casting a subdued rock n’ roll
edge to Crandall’s epic pop structuring.
“Spinning
Out” is a straight-up rocker with southern influences, twanging
acoustic/electric trade-off, a real fireball of a chorus, tightly wound vocal
harmonies and frenetic guitar licks. If
you listen closely (especially with headphones), you’ll hear some psychedelic
Hammond organ in the background that crafts this masterpiece into a lost 70s
southern rocker. It’s easily one of the
album’s finest cuts. Consisting of
nothing more than Jeff’s tender voice, vast string arrangements and acoustic
guitar “Rain Song” dials down the mood into a candlelit gem that’s all about
settling into a mood. A crunchy
blues-rocker with full tilt stream of consciousness lyrics renders “The Big
Parade” as one of the most energetic tunes on the record. Always willing to experiment with different
themes and textures, Crandall adds a mariachi horn section to the proceedings
that really jazzes things up.
The
lively “Catatonia” splits the difference between acoustic and electric
augmentations which takes Jeff’s vastly different realms and merges them
together. Deep bass licks and
steady-handed drumming propel the song forward while one acoustic guitar holds
a rhythm and the other adds some scorching licks. A soft bedding of keyboards and symphonic
strings glues all of the disparate elements together, cohesively. Another version of Crandall’s take on the
blues appears in the mid-tempo shuck of “Las Cruces.” It ebbs slowly, cautiously; starting off
acoustic and delicately adding electric layers overtop. The orchestral, chamber style pop of
“Firefly” is minimalistic when it comes to instrumental busyness but packs a
plethora of viola, cello, booming tablas and grand harmony vocals for a very
full feel. A similar vein is mined on
the Western-themed glory heard in “Camera Obscura,” a tune that’s help to
sandwich in the acoustic bliss of “Blue.”
“Santa Cruz” is another piece that is right in line with “Firefly” and
“Camera Obscura.” Closer “Sun Sun True”
rides a crest of grandiose acoustic guitar twinkle, slamming drums, mariachi
horns and groovy swipes of electric guitar.
An overflow of harmony vocals lends the track a 60s, West Coast psyche
pop vibe.
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