All Reviews Of The Stranger of Every
Yes, this is quite a mixture of style, never quite sounding like rock but really, it does. There is a solid beat, but the swing is strong, and the lyrical flow drives the real rhythm to theatrical extremes.
It is not chaos, it is intricate elaboration that rules here. First there are all these side melodies that stick the verse/chorus/bridge like jazz glue together. I almost feel there would be no song left were all that stripped away, but there is a song under it all to be sure, and it sounds like it could be part of a Broadway musical. It doesn't have the thematic lead song thing going, but it could be this character's song who is probably the seedy guy leaning on the unscrupulous side.
There are instrumentally some wow moments, say 3:05 and that electric lead guitar, impressively played, but it is almost lost in all the constant activity.
The sound seemed a little too compressed at times, almost muffling, but I will say that it never interfered with the intelligibility, so it was not a showstopper.
Ambitious and daring, not warm and fuzzy, interesting and not inspiring, a little dark and high brow, and believe it or not still quite fun.
This is instantly engaging-with its fast stuttering rythm giving a darkly comic feel that seems in keeping with the vibe of the lyrics (from what i could make it)
The first few bars of the chorus were making me wonder melodically where i've heard it before-then it suddenly twigged 'My Life' by Billy Joel..Which is kinda weird as the whole vibe of that song is almost diametrically opposed to this..
There's alot of great little touches in its pretty busy production-the quick shout back vocals on the verse-the guitar solo,the cool rollikin' piano..
The demonic middle 8's extremely sarcastic wasp like vibe-repeated at the end- would def start annoying me after abit-tho i can appreciate its creative..
Enjoyable listen tho..
This song had a strong theatrical vibe. This is a tune one would expect to hear in a musicial. Lead vocalist has a vocal style a lot like David Bowie. The presentation of the lyrics and melody are well done, with a good mix in dynamics and drama.
The combination of the vaudville type piano and grungy git bits definitely puts this tune into a rock opera genre. Really enjoyed listening to the lead git solo.
Interesting outro.
The strangeness of this tune and the rock operaish feel is what would make me play this tune over and over again. Thumbs up.
a pretty wild intro actually - especially when you consider it leads into what is essentially a fun show song!
as I sit through the first listen, at first I feel like it's just wrong that it's being considered a "pop" song by the musicians but then again, the longer I consider it- the more I sorta love the idea that it's trying to break over the edge of dramatic storytelling music into a more commercial mainstream audience oriented world. and I applaud the effort.
the musicianship is stellar across the board. great beat for the style - it drives the tune along - tho at times I wish the drums stood a little hotter in the mix - not always - jst a few times when it seems like the flow would be better served by more leading man kitting. the bass is about as perfect as it can be to be honest. it follows sometimes, it leads at other times and sometimes it just holds open the door for everything else.
the guitars are all just all anybody could ask for - the players had fun - they got to be star and they got to groove and they got to be voices as important as the singers - what with the frills, extended noodling masquerading as rhythm keeping and all that while just sounding great and being fully rep'd in the mix so you could hear each and every note. some pretty damn hot stuff happening there ...
the piano seems to be very underestimated in the mix, almost an afterthought in performance at times but thesong would lose so much of it's showy texture if it weren't there. it's the unsung hero of the song - as good as could be imagined. and all with no complaints about getting second tier billing. the perfect role player.
the vocals .... well, the vocals .... for what this song is trying to do - which is to entertain me - nothing more, nothing less ... it's a broadway hit. a crossover pop charting hit. the drama is fabulous. the expression is audaciously adept. the dynamically driven vocal arrangement is met equally by the wonderfully flowing lyrical promise of the story. which is scripted with ease and accessibility throughout. the lead vocal is pretty much flawless like the top billing star it thinks it should be and the supporting cast is a lesson in accentuating the positive and lifting the team higher and higher with it's energy and creative drive.
the vocals are just great. tho I did wonder for a second if somebody was trying a little too hard to recreate a bit of uncle albert's past.
all in all, just an incredibly enjoyable piece of music. I now have decided I want to actually go to the theatre and see the show and after that, I will buy the single and look at the rest of the soundtrack cus if it's as good as this, I'm loving it. this is what fun music is all about. not silly jokes and not stupid cliche songs that fall apart after a dozen listens. this one is one you can return again and again to. and likely - it'll stay fresh and easy to hear time after time.
tattered stage curtains be damned - take a bow kids.
A fast-paced journey through the mind of a madman, its external and internal inhabitants, they don't come much more interesting and original than this.
From your first introduction to a cornucopia cast, you are drawn into the manic heart of this surreal Lynchesque drama, bombarded with a monologue of words and impressions.
It takes several listens to get the hang of it all.
Wonderful musicianship and clarity of production provides a foundation without which the whole thing could collapse into a confused mess.
As it develops one gets the impression of Bowie in Vaudeville, but only in touches. The Queen-like guitar layers which tie up the verses move it all somewhere else.
Excellent vocals all the way, especially as they have a little more spit than polish. At the climax one has the feeling of being at the centre of a crowd of advancing carnival zombies.
For a long song, it's over too quick. Sometimes earnestly making a statement, and mostly a whole lot of fun. The only criticism worth mentioning is that there is room for a little more dynamism in the mix in the first two thirds.
But very talented and inventive songwriting here. Well done.
