Standing at the Edge

Casey Stratton | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 20, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00016XO56
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #252,752 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. For Reasons Unexplained

2. Hollow

3. The House of Jupiter

4. Contagious

5. Blood

6. The Dead Sea

7. Harvest

8. Past the Rain

9. Violet Room

10. Cellophane

11. Bloom

12. Ocean

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seeps Into Your Soul, March 10, 2004

By 

Jon Huff "designer and aritst" (IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Standing at the Edge (Audio CD)

Like others who reviewed this album, I discovered it through a listening station at a bookstore. I listened on a whim, and man am I glad I did! From the arresting opening track "For Reasons Unexplained" I was hooked. I listened to a few more tracks, and decided the CD had to be mine. I used my money to buy this CD instead of a few others by more established artists that I wanted. I don't regret it.

I'll admit, my first few listens I felt that perhaps it was a bit samey. Somehow, though, I couldn't stop listening and as I listened the identity of the songs began to be drawn in sharp relief.

First though, let's comment on his voice. He has quite a range. Thankfully, it's also very pleasing. I don't often like male voices that can go into the stratosphere often because they become shart and displeasing at times (ala Justin Timberlake or moments in Daniel Beddingfield's "You're Not The One") but Stratton has a definite command of his voice, and when he goes into the higher notes they are always smooth and beautiful. He's got a great tone to his voice that definitely stands out from the choked falsetto of some male singers.

Then there are the song's themselves. If you were to just read the lyrics, they probably wouldn't blow you away with either their poetry or their intricateness. They are a bit more straightforward then that... but I appreciate that in many ways. They are more sincere, with enough artistic and poetic touches to make them interesting. The delivery and the music drive them home and make it all a pleasing package.

It's hard to pick highlights, as they all stand out for different reasons. However, I'd highly recommend the soaring "House of Jupiter," the extremely catchy "Blood" (perhaps my favorite track) to the lovely and gentle "Dead Sea" and "Ocean" and the absolutely heart-breaking "Cellophane" that hit me for personal reasons.

There's a lot of emotional depth here, and a lot that a person can connect to, which is what I like to do with music. I'm a college student, and having just got my aid check and with a local music store going out of business, I've purchased about 30 CD's within the last month. This is probably my favorite.

It's energizing artistically. It has me really wanting to pick up my guitar again.

Do yourself a favor and give him a listen... download his song from I-Tunes so you can get more then just the 30 second clip. I don't think he'll be for everyone, but I do think there are many people out there who would be proud to ad "Standing at the Edge" to their CD collection.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stunning Debut, June 12, 2004

By 

Lee Armstrong (Winterville, NC United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Standing at the Edge (Audio CD)

Casey Stratton's CD jumped out of the Barnes & Nobles listening station for me as it has for many of the reviewers here on Amazon. I didn't write down his name or the CD title; I just remembered the haunting strains of "For Reasons Unexplained" and "House of Jupiter." I finally had to search an entire mega-music store to recognize the cover. I'm glad I found it again!

For me, there are three jewels in the set. The opening track "For Reasons Unexplained" opens with Casey's arresting piano and his incredible voice on the title track, "If I had been more confident of myself maybe less afraid of everything ... if you had been more honest with me, I might have made it." The track with Abe Laboriel's drums builds subtly to a great dramatic climax. "House of Jupiter" has Casey cruising gracefully in his upper register on the chorus, "It wasn't me then who took you to the edge and watched you fall." Paul Bushnell's bass thumps assuredly giving a backbeat to the make the mix unforgettable. "Blood" is also an exquisite track with Casey's piano seeming to be inspired by Henry Mancini & Peter Gunn with the throbbing rock beat supplied by Brian MacLeod, "And you remind me of my sanity doctor, teleport me out of your design, this is fear -- welcome to my little flood." It is an unforgettable track that ends with some energetic Lamaze-type breathing. Of the other tracks, "Contagious" is a haunting slow melody while "Cellophane" has some interesting electroica flourishes with Casey's delightful vocal. As you listen to Stratton's music, the surface is usually either bright or lush; but when you delve into the lyric, there is a darker undercurrent that feeds the creative tension. This is an impressive beginning that makes Stratton an artist to watch in this decade of zeros. Enjoy!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Chance Find Of Great Value, February 15, 2004

By 

"ldfr79" (Toledo, OH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Standing at the Edge (Audio CD)

I have an annoying habit (to me anyway) of discovering and loving a group or singer just before they retire or break up. I remember discovering Savage Garden's "Affirmation" album, then finding out within weeks that this wonderful group was gone for good (incidentaly, the new Darren Hayes doesn't hold a candle to the old one). As a classically trained composer/singer/pianist, I tend to like quite a bit of substance in the music I listen to. I rarely find it.
I was walking through Barnes and Noble last night and happened to check out some random CDs I found on the wall. One of them was Casey's. I listened to the sample tracks, and became entranced by the high quality of musicianship all around. The vocal qualities aren't the only Savage Garden similarities I found. His lyrics reach beyond the usual "get with me baby" that I find so annoying. He writes about life, not just "love". Casey's talents as a pianist shine in a world of three chord wonders. They are fresh, adventurous, and fully guided by the passion each song conveys. This is pop music for the refined listener, yet never so cerebral that the casual listener couldn't sing along and love it. Casey's classical influences (Debussy, Ravel, Barber, and Copland) meld easily with folk, pop, and rock idioms. In short, this is a recording with something for everyone.
Finally, for those who have declared that this man's voice is like that of a woman, I have this advice: for someone who puts every bit of everything he is in his music, I can't imagine that Casey has altered his vocal production in any way that isn't natural for him. He is truly using every part of himself to express his innermost self. He sounds like Casey. No more, no less. I am thankful to find someone so vocally, compositionally, and poetically honest about himself.