DARBY JONES: 'Harmony And Discord'
(RoyalScrewMachine) |
After finally getting around to reviewing this album, I have to say I was truly disappointed when I went to DARBY JONES' official website (http://www.darbyjones.com) -- only to find out that this very promising band has now broken up!According to their site, after 4+ years together, the members of this New Jersey-based quartet have apparently decided to go their separate ways for creative reasons (Drummer Seth Masarsky and bass player Rob Chojnacki have already joined the band Breaking Laces).
Regardless, this excellent CD deserves a solid send-off review. Why? Because it's just that strong.
Upon first listen to "Harmony And Discord," I immediately realized just how listener-friendly DARBY JONES's music actually is (both vocally and instrumentally), and how that combination presents itself both in the quality of the songwriting, as well as the band's ability to crank out a solid, rocking groove with the best of any band of this type.
Nicely produced, well-written tunes abound throughout this entire album - so you really can't help but be endeared to this band's superb blend of modern emo pop/rock.
Plus no annoyingly-whiny vocals to be found here, either.
With hook-laden songs carefully crafted by excellent pop sensibilities, the opening track alone ('Opposite Corners') was enough to convince me that DARBY JONES are as good as any band at what they do best -- which is writing catchy songs.
Along with 'Opposite Corners,' other standout tracks on this album are the up-tempo 'Hydrated,' 'Promises' (a very strong pop song), 'Starry-Eyed,' and the brief-but-hooky 'Fire Drill.'
The dual-harmonized verse/chorus formula with an occassional short bridge or guitar solo (for instance, in 'Starry Eyed') works perfectly throughout "Harmony And Discord," although the band does stray into some otherwise interesting stuff towards the end of the album.
For instance, 'Lug Nuts' is a brief garage/punk rocker (1.39) that strays from the latter formula by not repeating any previous parts, yet grooves all the way through and has you hooked nonetheless.
The last song, 'The End,' is a complete diversion from the rest of the album's neatly crafted pop/rock formula with a trance-like, neo-psych feel.
It begins with a few minutes of simple acoustic guitar and drums that seem to be playing off one another in an unrehearsed fashion. Then a heavily-delayed slide guitar enters the picture along with a distorted vocal track, which both add even more of a psychedelic element to the Middle Eastern-type groove.
In my opinion, "Harmony And Discord" is an album on par with any recent offering by a major-label band currently playing this type of music.
I don't believe in making comparisons to other bands unless it's absolutely necessary, anyway. So I won't here, because DARBY JONES has no problem standing on their own two feet.
So in conclusion, if you enjoy a brand of modern rock music that you can actually sing along to over and over again, then "Harmony And Discord" should make an excellent addition to your music collection.
- Michael Bennett, RockAndMetal.com
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