|
| |
Darden Smith
Field of Crows
(Dualtone)
First Appeared in The Music Box, March 2006, Volume 13, #3
Written by Brian Baker
At this point in Darden Smith’s career, it would be easy either to praise him
faintly or to dismiss him lightly. After all, Field of Crows, his ninth
album, is a pleasant enough experience, and throughout the effort, Smith’s
honeyed voice floats above his meticulous but airily arranged electric, folk/pop
soundtrack — so much so that it inspires neither celebratory hand springs nor
outright revulsion. It all just seems so polite, and therein lies the greatest
danger in a cursory examination of the outing. Lurking beneath the surface of
Smith’s seemingly innocuous veneer is a set of material that not only is
deceptively wistful in its musical presentation but also is rife with plenty of
disconcerting lyrical imagery. Part of the deception is found in the titles to
his songs. Talk Me Down, for example, isn’t about condescension; it’s
about suicide, be it literal or metaphorical. Likewise, Golden Age isn’t
about the best of times; it’s about the worst of times, or as he puts it, "the
golden age of pain." With its laconic Beatles-via-Marc Cohn melodiousness,
Anyway is a prime example of Smith’s dichotomy, and it smooths the way for
his David Baerwald-like lyrics of recrimination and resignation ("You spread
your love like broken glass/Beautiful to see/Lead me down the garden path/Trying
to make me bleed"). Like the bird after which he named his new album, Smith’s
work initially appears to be monochromatic and only mildly interesting, but if
studied carefully, it reveals itself to be surprisingly full of wicked
complexity and passionate intelligence. 
Editor's Note: This article has been edited and reprinted with the full
permission of Country Standard Time.
Field of Crows is available from Amazon.com.
To order, Click Here!
For Canadian orders, please Click Here!
For UK orders, please Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2006
The Music Box
|
