Polished Tin Pan Alley, Alt-1920’s Pop-Country with Dance Hall Frivolity & Magic

While some may mistakenly tag Comrad’s music as country I hear a far stronger influence in the more creative, lighter and melodic rock of Tom Petty. But, the one artist that did have this Connecticut artists’ style years ago and was quite wonderful was an obscure English singer-songwriter named Sam Leno. He had one wonderful album called “Ordinary Man,” on the Anchor Label (I think it was a subsidiary of ABC Records – it was also home to Alice Cooper, the Easy Rider soundtrack, Joe Walsh, & Steely Dan in the UK). The similarities to Leno are impressive. But, alright…Leno is the past — but, what I am suggesting is that Comrad is mining an interesting vein of music and he is quite competetent with it. Comrad is not imitating Sam Leno. How could he? I doubt Comrad ever heard of Sam Leno. It’s just that these two artists are on the same wave-length, kindred spirits, soul-brothers. Is Comrad exactly like Sam Leno? No. Comrad is still an original. Joe Cocker was not Ray Charles….the late Robin Williams was a kindred spirit with the late Jonathan Winters.…you know what I mean? 

“10 Feet Away,” starts off with the title track — a catchy mandolin drive and steady drum beat and Comrad is hot out of the starting gate. It’s material that is light and airy, yet powerful in the manner that follows the same path as — let’s say, They Might Be Giants. This band has that same comical, caustic, creative, and melodic bent that drives Comrad. TMBG‘s John Flansburgh & John Linnell’s great song “Birdhouse In Your Soul” is a fine example of that fiery, somewhat humorous, yet satirical take. The chorus and choir on this track is infectious, as well as, the effective use of brass. Comrad’s voice, always appealing in how he unravels his tales, fuels this kind of well-driven, somewhat quirky and fun melodies. But, unlike these artists, Comrad seems to keep a reliable lid on the wackiness and keeps much of his seriousness of the music in check. 

Up next on my stream of this album is “Full of Texas,” and it’s a little closer to country. Despite the title, it’s production value and arrangement is a little right of country and more leaning towards a heavier pop vein. That great male choir is powerful and dynamic and the songs are short, to the point, and are like gum drops: they don’t last long, but they’re sweet, delicious and you find yourself going back into the bag for more.

It seems Comrad is attempting to bring traditional country into the 21^st Century. Unlike many artists in country music today who are actually singing pop songs and not walking traditional country paths — Comrad seems to prefer tweaking the real thing. He shows respect for the tradition, but he twists it into a more modern manner without losing the tasty, necessary fat of what keeps country flavorful.

“80 Proof Waltz” is a slower song – and Comrad sings poignantly and sincerely. Just when you think it’s going to be a drag of a song he adds a beat with some gentle piano that intensifies it. The mood that descends into your ears is closer to a saloon song that Frank Sinatra would do. The calm brass and the excellent ambience of this slow song twists a proverbial wash rag of music tight for every intense, wonderful musical note.

I can see Comrad standing under a neon-like spotlight singing this song with a cigarette and fedora as he twists that rag and their musical notes fall to his feet in the shadows. The drums toward the conclusion are beautifully rendered and add so much to the songs simplicity. Wonderful musicianship.

The mandolin returns with “1000 Lives,” and this track has a knee-slap beat and a harmonica that moves the tune along with jaunty energy. By this point I’m staring at the cover of the LP wondering why Comrad would choose such juvenile art work (well-rendered though) for these types of songs. The songs all certainly deserve better representation. “1000 Lives,” has a retro feel to it, but it sounds like one of those songs that is fun to play. The voice is clear and resonates nicely. I usually don’t care for songs that use whistling, but in this tune it’s a wonderful addition. Comrad definitely knows what he wants to present and how he wishes to achieve it.

“Date With Jesus,” is up next and it’s here that the singer-songwriter Sam Leno comes to mind again. Leno’s album was filled with these kinds of light, well-recorded, fun to sing melodies. Leno’s voice was also relatively close to Comrad’s in tone. Leno’s 1975 song “Bring It Back,” is the one that comes to mind and it’s a brilliant musical confection. This is all in keeping as a compliment because Leno was a great singer-songwriter. Unfortunately, none of Leno’s material is on YouTube for a sample. Nonetheless, Comrad and Sam have a lot in common and I am pleased that Comrad plows the same field expertly. It’s a rich, ignored musical style. While Leno is closer to Tin Pan Alley, pop songs of the 1920’s and dance hall frivolity than anything I’ve heard of late. Comrad is on that musical tightrope — and he is well-balanced.  

Sam Leno short sample for reference:

http://www.mindermusic.com/samples0809/You%20Know%20What%20I%20Mean.SWF.html

Comrad manages to keep all this material stylistically classy and modern. “Date With Jesus,” has some beautiful crystal clear guitar interplay that’s quite appealing and it’s song lyric is humorous, but not in a joking manner. Comrad also peppers many of his songs with little musical ditties like toy piano notes, bells and whistles and whatever makes a song even more interesting. The steady, yet un-intruding brass, frames many of the songs with the necessary salt to maintain flavor. 

“Flying Cars,” is the final tune in the stream. The collection is only six songs long, yet each has its diversification and escapism. This song features some nice acoustic guitar and maybe a little too much Comrad falsetto. I like his regular voice better, but that’s just a personal opinion. Comrad has that kind of voice that can cover so many genres of music successfully. 

I listened by stream so I can’t comment on the packaging 100% although, as I stated earlier, I believe these songs deserve a better cover representation. The art almost makes me believe the songs would be children-oriented. They’re not.

Comrad must be a good enough looking man to have showcased himself on the album cover. That would have justified the music far better. Sam Leno was seen on his cover holding an umbrella while treading water. Comrad’s sense of light humor comes through very well in his songs nevertheless.

I did not have information on specific musicians and production credits so I didn’t go into any detail except to focus on some competent performances of worthy contribution. This may all be the result of the fact that the EP isn’t yet released. 

If you like rap and hip-hop – this is not for you. If you like simple, creative and original pop music with a little humor and vinegar – this effort has a lot of steam in its pipes. So — the cover could’ve been a little more imaginative. But, it is the music that matters when all is said and done and the music is there.

Website: http://comradmusic.com/

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/ComradMusic/

SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/comrad-3

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this review / commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of No Depression. All photography is owned by the respective photographers and is their copyrighted image; credited where photographer’s name was known & being used here solely as reference and will be removed on request. YouTube images are standard YouTube license.

John Apice / No Depression / October 2016