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- From Brooklyn (2005)
From Brooklyn (2005)
The Mourning / Mr. Sam / Everyday / Wild Garden / S.W.O.J. / Leave Today / Advancement / Baby Bias / The Jesus Orphan's / Waiting
When
David Aaron dryly announces "I blew up the world" and launches into the catchy
post-grunge-electro-funk-rock of "The Mourning" - the kind of track that would
work perfectly in a Hollywood-financed, adrenalin-fueled action flick - you'll
presume that David Aaron is just the voice and face of a full band, but nothing's
further removed from the truth. Aaron is a singer-songwriter in the purest
sense of the word, but one who's also trained, versatile and capable of mastering
both analogue and digital musicianship, which enables him to create credible
multi-layered music, both rock (in the broad sense of the word, like in "The
Morning" and "Mr. Sam") as well as the usual, more sparse, fare. From Brooklyn
is crammed with little sonic details (programmed beats, samples, string parts,
etc) that pop up here and there, adding a cinematographic or occasionally
even a slightly experimental edge to the music. The first half of the album
is basically a wildly eclectic succession of songs and while it's far from
a mess, the listener might start to wonder where Aaron's true allegiances
actually lay, as the catchy mainstream rock-with-electronica-flourishes of
"Wild Garden" is thrown in the same bowl as the anthemic alt-rock of "Leave
Today" (probably the track with the largest hit potential, hovering between
second generation grunge, Frank Black's awkwardness and hesitant rock/dance
genre-bending) and material that explores calmer/more experimental territory.
Usually, the results are as successful there: "Everyday" couples an ominous
piano melody to understated beats, bringing it close to the late night moodiness
of Bristol's trip-hop, while "The Jesus Orphan's" reconciles sober acoustic
guitar parts with background hisses and street-smart lyrics. Not everything
on From Brooklyn works as well: "Advancement" and "Baby Bias" are more
dressed up sketches than actual fleshed-out songs and "Waiting" comes perhaps
a little bit too close to the droopy soft-pop that seems to have become Britain's
most popular export product the past few years, but it doesn't diminish the
fact that it's obvious David Aaron is one talented guy with songwriting skills,
a knack for melody, subtle experimentation and enough flair to make it by
himself. A nice extra (actually a personal favorite) is the un-credited bonus
track, a groovy noir piece that incorporates a lazy, cool hip-hop beat
and dresses it up with horn parts, vibes and a spoken word rant, evoking Barry
Adamson's murky aural movies. Oh yeah, the sound and style of David Aaron
also reminded me repeatedly of Belgian band Soulwax. Swell!
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