Customer Reviews

Six Kinds of Passion Looking for an Exit

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's been eight years since the last album... There's finally a new CD of brilliant new songs... It's Eric Matthews again... at last! So what are you waiting for?! Get the new album it's worth every penny and then some.

*Actually, 4.5 stars.*

Initially, I wasn't engaged by this disc, but repeated listenings reveal a thoughtfully constructed, varied song set displaying a wide range of emotions.

Two of the songs border on the downright giddy; it's great to see Eric exploring humor, however obscure. One of the songs, "Cardinal is More," refers to the name of the band he formed with Australian Richard Davies and the songs they made together. At one point in this song, Matthews sings the titles of songs they recorded as Cardinal. If you know the names of the songs, the references are kind of funny: "Christmas trees, and the silver machines...We'll sing to the sunshine, tough guy..." "Do You Really Want It?" is fun, too...similar in theme to Duncan Sheik's "On a High"; i.e., bound and determined to be happy no matter what.

For a long time, too, I was intrigued by a passage in "Underground Song," where he sings, "Why can't I be true? Why must I be constantly failing?" These lines reminded me of a phrase in another song. Finally, I (think) I got it... The Rascals' "How Can I Be Sure", where they sing, "How can I be sure? In a world that's constantly changing?"

There's a complexity and accessiblity in this disc that make it well worth checking out. I hope you like it as much as I do.

First of all, I am huge Eric Matthews fan, but there only two good songs on this ep- it's not really an full album. I think his first album was ground breaking, not to mention, consistent. On this ep, most of the songs song like outtakes and secondary compositions compared to his earlier work. Eric's voice has too many effects on it and the guitar solos date the songs a bit. Having said that- Cardinal was phenomenal! It seems, both, Richard and Eric have struggled to capture the magic of that album. These guys, together, was a Godsend! The complimented each other so well. Crap, I'm going to call Bob Fay, Doyle, get some beer and see if we can get the band together!

Some of these songs may take time to grow on you, but these are by far some of the best songs released by Mr Matthews to date. MOJO magazine said it best -- "For the past decade or so, it's been hip to use terms like orchestral pop, and drop 'auteur' names like Brian Wilson or Jimmy Webb. Eric Matthews was there first, and does it best...." This is a haunting and beautiful recording from one of the most criminally overlooked songwriters of our time. RIYL: Josh Rouse, Belle & Sebastian, Brian Wilson, Sufjan Stevens. Highly recommended!

After a long seven years during which we fans of Eric's great music have waited, he has released his new project. As always, his compositional and recording artistry shines through. Ah, the pleasure of kicking back and listening to beautiful even poetic songs with real melodies and harmonies, and brilliant arrangements. Thank you Eric for another musical gift. Please don't wait another seven years for your next project. My only complaint: the new CD has only seven tracks. One track for each year of his wilderness years.

It took him 7 years to release this "album" of 7 songs. None of them have real strong hooks and they seem almost like leftovers from his last album.

I hope it doesn't take him this long for the next album, becasue the long wait wasn't worth the mediocrity of most of this album.