It`s taking me ages to make my mind up about this album; sometimes I play it and I`m fascinated; other times I listen to about one verse and think, "Not now, thank you, Mayo".
The songs are full of surprises, so they demand your attention, even though sometimes that attention isn`t really rewarded. The song
Fortune is a good example, I think. It has a great, simple start:-
The bride sits down to breakfast in the dining room.
She thought she saw a ghost but it was really just the groom.
But somehow by the end of the song, I`ve lost interest in what Mayo wants to say. It`s like listening to a friend who talks too much. He does have some great lyrics, though; in the middle of another song he throws in a line about
"... if your blouse becomes my towel ..." and so my interest picks up again.
Like stp, I didn`t particularly like Mayo`s voice; he doesn`t seem to have many nuances - like warmth for instance - at his disposal. On the other hand, I admired the way the arrangements were kept simple, so that the songs, and the singing, stand out in all their flawed glory. On balance, I have the feeling that this album might, slowly, reveal more of its virtues and grow on me a lot, so for now I`m voting "Good" - in six months I might be changing that to "Excellent".
PS. Yes,
Horses is a good track, Frownland. I also liked
Around The Home - another song in which the lyrics lure you into expecting one thing, before they head off in some different direction. And thanks again for the link, BTW !
