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DVDfever.co.uk – Sam Isaac: Bears CD reviewElly Roberts reviews
14th Floor Records
- Released: June 2009
- Rating: 6/10
- Vote and comment on this album:View Comments
Pretty good start. Still some way to go.
After a health scare (a disease caught from eating mackerel, normally exclusive to fish) Sam Isaac finally gets his debut album out on 14th Floor Records.
Worcestershires very own Isaac relocated to London three years ago to pursue his dream. He was eventually signed to Back2Forward Records, releasing his debut EP Compass Scattered Love. This was followed by a novel approach to touring. This indie-folk-popster decided to drop by fans homes and set up his gear. Very novel: not new.The closest contemporary he probably has is Badly Drawn Boy in terms of musical soundscapes, though here and there, some might find similarities with Conor Obersts Bright Eyes, but not as good.
Isaacs voice isnt great by any means, lacking range, but the Malvern man can role out some pleasant tunes, some however seem to go on forever lacking any direction.
Bears, the title track, is bedded by delicate synth and sweet piano that run the songs duration before a crunching build-up enters, unfolding into beefy rocker.Full of gusto, Come Back Home Tonight surges like and unstoppable juggernaut with later Sticker, Star and Tape taking a similar frenetic frame, one which Im sure will be a live lads favourite. In fact tracks 2, 3, and 4 could all blend seamlessly into each other without one really standing out.
For me, Isaac works best when hes doing the gentler folkier stuff such as the gorgeous piano-led Berlin, where the understated brass arrangements prove to be a magical touch, and the melancholic, yet sweet, ballad What Good Did That Do? which has some lush and sweeping strings, making them the albums best moments. A major low happens on the lacklustre I Traded My Friends as he tries to do a Badly Drawn Boy semi-rocker. This could have been left off the album in my opinion.Things improve massively on the albums closer, Apple Tree, a semi-indie folk gem with the various shifts and instrumentation taking centre stage.
Nip and tucking some tracks, with a couple of omissions would have made this a better listen.
The verdict On a learning curve.
Weblinks:samisaac.co.uk /myspace.com/samisaac
The full list of tracks included are :
1. Bears
2. Come Back Home Tonight
3. Fire Fire
4. Sticker, Star And Tape
5. Annie, Why Are You So Angry?
6. Sideways
7. Berlin
8. I Traded My Friends For You
9. Carbon Dating
10. Calendar
11. What Good Did That Do?
12. Apple Tree View the discussion thread.blog comments powered by Disqus= 0) {query += ‘url’ + i + ‘=’ + encodeURIComponent(links[i].href) + ‘&’;}}document.write(”);})();//]]]]>]]>
Elly Roberts passed away in 2011, but he was a man who was so passionate about all types of music and loved meeting his musical heroes, such as Mick Hucknall at a book signing at the Trafford Centre, Manchester in 2007.
A former teacher and also a music journalist, DJ and radio presenter on local community station Calon FM, plus appearances on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 2, Elly started doing reviews for DVDfever.co.uk in 2004 and he did the majority of the CD and concerts reviews on the website.
I know also that he loved getting away for the summer to Spain and I hope that wherever he is now he is enjoying the hot sunshine and, as one of his friends has said on his Facebook page, that he is interviewing his musical heroes.