Posted on: July 31, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Scott Marrow – For All The Time You Spend Losing…You Better Enjoy Your Failures / 2007 Whiteroom / 9 Tracks / http://www.myspace.com/scottmarrow / http://www.whiteroomrecords.com /

Man, I was completely expecting something else from Scott Marrow. I really thought that what would result with “For All The Time You Spend Losing” would be yet another boring singer-songwriter with an acoustic guitar. However, Marrow impresses with eir blend of Two Gallants, The White Stripes, Lucero, and Latterman during “Didn’t Mean To Say I Told You So”. The production may be a little bit on the rough side, but Marrow is able to shine even through the fuzz and haze that is present. What is the strongest suit to Marrow on these opening tracks has to be the spontaneity that ey brings to the disc.

While there still is an overall structure to the tracks on this disc, there is little that individuals will be able to forecast.  A guitar line will come from nowhere, a splashy drum will start up, and individuals would have little club that that would happen three seconds before. The overall momentum slows down during “A Million Ways to Say the Exact Same Thing, but Marrow’s allure does not decrease in the slightest during this track. This is due to the fact that there is an electronic fuzz to the track that works with Marrow’s own re-interpretation of the falsetto that fueled the Crash Test Dummies hit “Keep A Lid On Things”. The more spastic and spontaneous sound comes back during “Disappointments Keeping Score”. Despite the changes in styles between these first few tracks of “For All The Time”, there is a cohesion present here that few albums are able to achieve.

What is the most interesting thing during “Disappointments Keeping Score” has to be the use of Marrow’s vocals as another instrument during the track. Rather than being an instrument in the traditional scene, the vocals act in much the same way as a shrill guitar would, in terms of what it adds to the mix.”For All The Time You Spend Losing” is yet another solid track by Marrow, and while it does not bring anything completely new to the disc, it operates as a glue that links together the diverse array of sounds and styles present on earlier tracks on the album. If Marrow could get a better set of recording equipment for eir next album, I believe that finding a flaw in this subsequent album would be nigh impossible. The tracks are punchy, smart, and will reside in listeners’ memories well after the disc shuts off.

Top Tracks: For All The Time You Spend Losing, Disappointments Keeping Score

Rating: 7.2/10

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