STYLE: Roots/Acoustic RATING OUR PRODUCT CODE: 167560-26175 LABEL: Independent FORMAT: CD Album ITEMS: 1
Reviewed by Lins Honeyman
This is the ninth full length album from Maryland-based singer/songwriter Bob Brown (stage name Moron) and, as anyone who has sampled his leftfield work before will recognise, it certainly is an acquired taste. The musical backdrop has a demo-like quality - basic acoustic guitar accompaniment and cheap Casio keyboard-sounding drum machine effects - but this, for the most part, works in a quirky sort of way. Equally quirky are Brown's songs ranging from the up-and-at-'em opener "The Living One" to alternate songs of worship like "To You" which find the singer semi-shouting his adoration to God in a way that sounds more pastiche than praise - albeit unintentionally. Brown's somewhat unhinged vocals grow on you after a while but some seriously off key moments in a terrible karaoke cover of Elvis' "Always On My Mind" induced a sharp intake of breath on first listen whilst a clunky parody of a Buggles hit in "MP3s Killed The Compact Disc Star" feels underdeveloped and poorly executed. Tagged onto the end, three remixes of songs from Brown's 'All Quiet On The Best Western Front' album fare better thanks to some nice added dance elements courtesy of producer Doug Milton.
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