Customer Reviews

Exploding Plastic Inevitable

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STILL in search of DL's classic This Day And Age (highly doubt it's on cd),this disc resurrected the intensity that his music & vocals signify. While there are no Am i Falling In Love Agains or Todays here,this is still a sit back and appreciate type of CD,,,ANYONE who is not familiar with DL should at ALL cost find ANY sort of copy of This Day & Age and rev up the decibels,,,,it is TRULY one of the greatest obscure rock albums of our generation,,,Thanl you DL,,,

DL Byron's "This Day and Age" album, released in 1980, was an unabashed, full steam ahead rocker, full of fun, tight songwriting and even tighter performances. He and his band were as good live as on record. I had the pleasure of seeing him at Gildersleeves in NYC that year, an event which included the unveiling of a song that would become a megahit for Pat Benatar, 'Shadows of the Night'. While it was probably the best thing Benatar ever did, DL's performance that night was jaw-dropping. Sorry Pat, but you came in a distant second. In fact, he announced that he had written it for Rachel Sweet, and her version actually predated Benatar's. Around this time, he also managed a duet with Billy Joel on a cover of 'Down in the Boondocks', which was only released as a single. At Gildersleeves that night, he told me that a new album was in the works, to be released later that fall.

And the result of all this? He seemingly fell off the planet. For years I wondered what happened to him. Then 'Exploding Plastic Inevitable' appeared and I was thrilled to finally have something new from this talented singer/songwriter. While clearly put together on a shoestring budget, DL's skill and exuberance still shine through. A more thoughtful effort than 'This Day and Age', DL's songwriting and arrangements are absolutely gorgeous on 'Witching Moon', 'Wonderland' and 'My Eyes Open', three songs that run together. There's even a live acoustic version of 'Shadows' as a reminder of where he came from. It's a short album, almost an EP, but worth picking up.

In addition, DL has had a couple of follow up albums. 'Plain Clothes' is an acoustic collection of originals. While I kept wishing that I could have heard several of these songs performed by a full band, the bare arrangements do well to showcase the power and range of DL's voice. There's a questionable kazoo solo on one song that takes some getting used to, but there's also the closing cut, 'The Other Man', that is absolutely breathtaking.

His most recent album, 'ITZ', is an attempted return to the style and power of 'This Day and Age'. Again, presumed budgetary constraints prevent this album from sounding better than it does, which isn't necessarily bad, just not all it needed to be. DL plays just about everything except drums and while he's a competent musician, he would have been better served with an accomplished lead guitarist. With all of that said, the album still rocks, is thoroughly enjoyable and DL's charisma as an artist is unfailingly evident. If you've heard, and hopefully liked, any of his other work, you will most certainly enjoy 'ITZ'.

Sad to say that only 'E.P.I' is available at Amazon, and even sadder that 'This Day and Age' doesn't seem to be available on CD at all, but if you stumble onto copies of any of his other albums, grab them.