no, this post title isn't some sort of facetious tribute to John Malkovich, it's actually the title of sound advice alumnus Jeremy Larson's debut album, released to little fanfare last month. The pride of Springfield, MO, he has taken the modern pop sound that had been introduced on a couple of EPs last year to an even more ambitious brand of pop with hints of electronics and classical music. In a genre that has seen its share of repetitiveness and lack of innovation over the years (Keane and Coldplay: I used to kinda like you guys, what happened??), this album feels like a harbinger of very good things to come. It's far from perfect, but it succeeds where so many fail by being fresh and assertive.
Most of the songs are piano-based, yet there is as much emphasis on the additional layers to give it a very modern sound. For sure, this is no electronic music, but there is a clear influence by the laptop-pop scene that has developed recently (DNTEL, The Album Leaf...). As a result many of the tracks create a mood that can feel cold and aloof, but also yearning for warmth. Consequently a lot of the material is about alienating distance and loneliness (Make Believe), but, equally importantly, about not giving up (Swim).
Yes, the music on this record is pretty, but thankfully on songs life More Than You or The Sound Of Snow Larson exhibits a modicum of desperation that is so often lacking in the genre. When you notice how innocuous the subject of love has become in mainstream pop songs, that is refreshing to hear.
Naturally not all is perfect on here, there are still a couple of skippers that, though not bad, aren't particularly memorable either (A Neutral Conclusion, Martyr). But consistency can always come later, what we have here right now is an artist unafraid to take chances to try to come up with an original take on a tired cliche, and that is most definitely a good thing.
listen to songs from the album here
Most of the songs are piano-based, yet there is as much emphasis on the additional layers to give it a very modern sound. For sure, this is no electronic music, but there is a clear influence by the laptop-pop scene that has developed recently (DNTEL, The Album Leaf...). As a result many of the tracks create a mood that can feel cold and aloof, but also yearning for warmth. Consequently a lot of the material is about alienating distance and loneliness (Make Believe), but, equally importantly, about not giving up (Swim).
Yes, the music on this record is pretty, but thankfully on songs life More Than You or The Sound Of Snow Larson exhibits a modicum of desperation that is so often lacking in the genre. When you notice how innocuous the subject of love has become in mainstream pop songs, that is refreshing to hear.
Naturally not all is perfect on here, there are still a couple of skippers that, though not bad, aren't particularly memorable either (A Neutral Conclusion, Martyr). But consistency can always come later, what we have here right now is an artist unafraid to take chances to try to come up with an original take on a tired cliche, and that is most definitely a good thing.
listen to songs from the album here
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