Chrisopher Blue – Room Tones (CD)

The style of music that Chrisopher Blue plays during “Room Tones” is a blend of rockabilly and lounge, with a little bit of John Maher throw in for good measure. This means that tracks like “Ghost in the Night” are ready for big time radio, even if the instrumentation is a little on the odd side. This instrumentation has a lot of blues (scat-era) present in its overall sound, which gives Chrisopher Blue that little extra innovation needed to really capture eir listeners. The slower sound of “After All I’ve Heard You Say” seems to put Chrisopher Blue into a Rufus Wainwright like sound, before the rest of the instrumentation kicks in. After that happens, one is reminded of the post-1998 Crash Test Dummies, specifically with their song “Keep A Lid On Things”.

Still, the production is impressive and Chrisopher Blue succeeds in stringing together songs nicely on this early part of “Room Tones”. Very few albums are able to continue their momentum over 13 tracks, but this is exactly what “Room Tones” does. Even when the tracks are slower and more deliberate, such as in “Such Love”, Chrisopher Blue is able to make a compelling reason to continue listening to the music on this album. There are so many different hints and notes of varying styles that one cannot easily pin down what Chrisopher Blue did or is doing with the tracks on “Room Tones”. This spontaneity is another strong part of Chrisopher Blue’s allure, and is one of the reasons why I could completely see eir achieving success with songs like “Such Love”, which play on a unity of Radiohead and Christopher Isaak.

The majority of tracks on “Room Tones” are under three minutes, which allow Chrisopher Blue to go forth, crafting songs that are catchy and energetic without having to come up with four or five minutes of music. This also decreases the possibility that individuals will get bored with the compositions on this album; “Equanimity” is just one of many of the tracks on this disc that fit into this example. Individuals may not know who Chrisopher Blue is at this time, but the solid album that ey cuts with “Room Tones” is enough to have individuals listening in for more. Without anything in the way of weaknesses present in this album, the pop-cum-indie rock stylings of Chrisopher Blue are exactly what alternative rock stations to counter the dour music that is the norm.

Top Tracks: Equanimity, Alone

Rating: 6.8/10

Chrisopher Blue – Room Tones / 2007 Sarathan / 13 Tracks / http://www.chrisopherblue.com / http://www.sarathan.com / Reviewed 25 February 2007

[JMcQ]