  If
I were to title this review, it would be a line from one of the songs:
"(His) silent shadows confuse my view…"
The
songs are wonderfully performed, pristinely recorded, and precisely
arranged. The melodies are intricate and fascinating. The lyrics
are thoughtful and profound.
At
least, I assume they are.
They
certainly sounded profound.
Except
for the fact that I couldn't make much tangible sense out of most
of them.
There
is a trend among current singer/songwriters, both in the big world
and in the LDS market, which seems to think that if the audience
"gets it", then the song wasn't deep enough. Obscurity
seems to be their holy grail. Unfortunately, they seem to be finding
that grail rather a lot. After listening to "Inside",
I'm left with the sense that I just had a glimpse deep into Kirby's
bared soul, and I couldn't make heads or tails out of any of it.
It's like he wants to share his most inner secrets with me, but
he also still wants to keep his distance.
"Patience",
for example, is a great tune, but one that I don't understand. There
were some cool fishing metaphors in there, but I'm not sure the
interpretation thereof. "this", "Chances", and
"Inside" were all like that, too. It's like, if I were
to just hear the CD, and not really listen closely, I'd be carried
along on a wonderful, sonically intriguing, and relaxing ride. But
as soon as I start paying attention, I get lost.
There
are a few songs that I managed to "get". "Simon"
is about the apostle Peter. It's a tasty tune, with acoustic guitar
and strings. Very Peter Breinholt.
"Won't
Get No Lovin'" is a breakup song about a guy that loved a girl
that didn't care about him, or anyone else, really. She flits from
one to the other, and he gives up waiting for her to settle down.
This one is by far my favorite of the whole CD, with this killer
retro jazz feel. Almost big band without the band. I love it when
he screams out the vocals at the end.
There
was one song that I have to say I had a very hard time with. "Stay
With Me" is a basic love song, but it left me wondering. The
song, especially the chorus, could be interpreted to imply immorality.
"Stay with me, you know you want to / Stay with me, don't change
your mind / Stay with me, don't keep me waiting / Stay with me tonight…"
I searched and searched for alternative interpretations, but nothing
but the wrong one fit. I also don't like to take things out of context,
but honestly, there was nothing in the verses to clarify the meaning.
Now clearly, that lyric isn't as foul or innuendo-laced as, say,
an Aerosmith or a Madonna song, but for someone that's approaching
the LDS market, it made me wonder what the intent of the song really
was.
Now,
don't get me started on his voice. I could go on about that for
pages. If I could sing half this well, I'd be set. I'd be hard pressed
to find a voice this expressive in all of LDS pop. All the bits
of vocal styling are at his simple and easy command: Soft, gentle,
gritty, edgy, loving, angry, it's all there. And he can flip from
one to the other in a heartbeat. I'm in awe. It's THAT good.
I really
like the guitar playing, and while it fits pretty nicely into that
Acoustic-y, Folk-y singer/songwriter thang that Peter Breinholt,
Cherie Call, and Shane Jackman have, he's also fresh and different
from them in the arrangements and the execution.
Three
and a half stars. I'd love to give it more, but I just have no idea
what he's talking about.
------------------------
Mark Hansen
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