Darker Days by Andy Shauf
Everyone likes to sing in the shower, in the car, in your room, when no one can hear you. We are all excellent in our own minds. And the ones who truly think they are (but aren't) go on American Idol and are given a dose of harsh reality. Andy Shauf was one of those people except he actually CAN sing. He hid his songwriting skills from his friends, recording many songs in private and not sharing them until he felt he was ready to share.Glad he finally got to share. What resulted in Andy's years of songwriting and demo recording is Darker Days- an aptly titled album full of sparse acoustic, folk-pop. Shauf wears his heart on his sleeve for much of the album, searching for love on the bouncy, upbeat opener Your Heart. He doesn't deliver another optimistic number until the middle of the album on The Greatest Moments, one of the best on Days.
Shauf's voice is simple and melodic, carrying an inherent sadness, but at times cannot deliver the strength the songs sometimes require. He must have be going through some really dark times because much of the album is a somber affair. The heart wrenching Were You In Love With Me tells of a love going unnoticed by another. Shauf sings over a yearning guitar line, Were you in love with me when we were on the couch?/ In between everyday what were your dreams about? The song practically bleeds at the end with Shauf wondering does she still love me?
But not everything connects quite as well. Darker Days is saddled by a sameness through its 11 songs. Yes, there are some great tunes to be discovered, but very little is done to shake up the monotony. It sounds great the first few songs but the hooks aren't strong enough to sustain an album's worth of downers. Darker Days shows Andy Shauf in one light, now if only he could lighten up. C+
Andy Shauf- Myspace
Your Heart (Live)-
No comments:
Post a Comment