Steven Page “Discipline: Heal Thyself, Pt. II”
Steven Page was once the leading voice in one of Canada’s most successful melodic pop bands, Barenaked Ladies. After 2009, Page left the band and they’ve gone their separate ways. Enough water has passed under the bridge now for both Page and his old band. Since Page was central to all those recognizable BNL hits, his solo work has gone in a different direction. The quirky subject matter of past is mostly gone and Steven faces more serious issues.
Page’s powerful tenor starts out slow and builds up to an impressive layered chorus in the opener “Nothing Special,” where he asks “What’s next?” and rattles off a series of timely fears (“Junior’s got a gun”) while stating “everything is fine.” Page does touch on political issues like “Where Do You Stand,” a soulful ballad and the single “White Noise” as a dual call to action to his audience about taking a stand against racism. One of the best songs here is the catchy “What I Got From You” full of strings, and a breezy melody with a jazzy horn interlude.
Page delves in bossa nova tempos and most of the songs hit their mark. Additional highlights include “Feelgood Summer,” the ELO-like “Shooting Star,” and the reflective dad advice in “Whistling Through The Dark.” This LP does require multiple listens to really appreciate all the details and the smart messaging contained therein. Highly Recommended!
Annie Dressner “Broken Into Pieces”
It’s been several years since I heard from folk-pop artist Annie Dressner, and her music is a good palette cleanser if you’ve been listening to heavier stuff. Starting with the opener “Fades Away” it has all the right melodic sensibilities with cello chords and Annie’s gentle vocals. The production is solid and the bouncy “Heartbreaker” is a descriptive environment of an ex-lover and moving on, all set to a quick tempo. Fans of Lisa Loeb and Jenny Lewis will enjoy Annie’s storytelling abilities and memorable choruses.
Most of the songs deal with the aftermath of a failed relationship, as “Kentucky” and “Over and Over” wallow in self-doubt and insecurity. But the latter song’s chorus with Dan Wilde (backing vocals) has some lovely harmonies. It doesn’t always neatly fit into the folk-pop genre, as “Get Out” and “Falter” are more straight pop, helped out by Matthew Caws(Nada Surf) on guitar. But what’s most impressive is her brilliant lyrics; “Spinning round that old record that I loved/Played it too much and I broke it” on the reflective ballad “Paper Moon.” Overall a great album for those freshly broken hearts.
Bandcamp Only | Full release 10/26