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THIS DELICATE THING WE'VE MADE ~ Darren Hayes If we were to take a hammer to Mr. Hayes’s head and smash it wide open, this album is what’s likely to spill out and leave a stain all over your lovely carpet. Without having to bow to the expectations or restrictions of a major record label, Darren has given birth to something quite extraordinary: his unfiltered self :P
Being answerable to no one has allowed him to be much more creative with his music. Even the title “This Delicate Thing We’ve Made” speaks of how personal this album is to him. The downside of flying solo in the music world is the utter lack of promotion and financial backing of a big record label, but since he got practically NO support on his last two solo albums, he probably didn’t see this as much of an issue. Still, there are times when an artist needs someone who can step back from the musical work and tell them when they’ve gone that bit too far. I’d have to question the albums length. Normally I wouldn’t complain about an artist being generous with the amount of material they release, but I’ve got to admit, it’s a tough job to make it through this double disc in one sitting. First, there’s quite a bit of padding going on. If the lacklustre tracks were removed, a much stronger single disc would have remained. In this case, I think two CDs were a little bit self-indulgent. The other reason it’s a bit of a strain on the old ears is Darrens voice. On many of the tracks he has had his voice altered and modulated to give it a surreal, processed edge. I get that this was intentional and in line with the overall sound of the album, but it does get a bit grating after a while! Now moving onto something more positive! :D
The album has very a strong cohesive sound to it and there’s definitely an over-arching theme running through it. A couple of the tracks even follow on from one another, subject-wise. His voice is still as dynamic as ever and can go places most male (and female! :P
) artists can only dream of. There are some truly excellent tracks to be found on the album. I’d go so far as to say that some of the songs are the best of his career to date. Because of the sheer wealth of material being offered, there really is something for everyone. There’s the catchy dance numbers, the unashamedly upbeat gay anthems, heartfelt ballads and a number of tracks that are truly epic in sound and scope. Since his last album “The Tension and the Spark”, Darren has shown a more introspective and darker side to his writing. Here he continues to delve deep and produces some meaningful and somewhat disturbing lyrics that are of particular interest. I see this album as being Darrens experiment in sound (and generally what he can get away with musically). The production is top notch and highly ambitious, mainly influenced by 80s electro-pop, but dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century. Gone is the instantly accessible (and far more commercial) sound of his Savage Garden days. Even the 80s electronica of his solo debut "Spin" is tame in comparison to his newest release. But all this album requires is a bit of patience and after a few listens it reveals some real gems.Standout Tracks:- A Fear of Falling Under
- Who Would Have Thought
- Casey
- Step Into The Light
- Sing To Me
- A Conversation with God
- The Future Holds a Lions Heart
- Neverland
- I Just Want You to Love Me
TOM BAXTER - LIVE AT THE VILLAGE I'd never been to The Village before, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was a pretty decent venue (apart from the fact that is was hot as HELL the whole night!). The stage was moderately sized, but there was plenty of room to stand around. The crowd was also nice on the night, no pushing or shoving to speak of (even though my bro insisted we stand up near the front!). Tom came out at the start, casual as you like, to introduce his warm-up act. "Vashti", who I'd never heard of before, turned out to be his sister (from the name I expected it to be either a band, or a man!). She was dressed exactly like how I'd picture a stereotypical French girl would dress (red neckerchief, polka dot dress, tight spandex pants cut off just before the ankles). Just like her big bro, she had a great big voice on her and a lot of emotion behind the lyrics. She was pleasant enough, but none of the songs grabbed me enough to shell out on her album (copies of which were laid out on a table near the bar). When Tom and his band finally emerged, they kicked things off with a rousing version of "Night Like This", the opening track to his new album "Skybound". What I was amazed at (and I think he was too) was that most of the crowd knew the words to his new material (or the chorus's at least!), despite the fact that the album is so far only available from his online website. He continued on with a couple more tracks from the new album, along with a few from his first. Sadly, he didnt sing "The Mood & Me", my fav song from "Feather & Stone" :(
I was sure he'd bring it out during the encore, but it wasn't to be...... My only complaints would be that there wasn't a whole lot of audience interaction going on, but Tom was on fine form throughout the night, putting everything into his performance. Of course he couldn't resist a few over-the-top, uber-dramatic moments during some of the songs, but its easy to forgive such indulgences :P
He is one of the few artists I think sounds as good, if not better live than on CD, so I would heartily encourage everyone to go see him in person if they ever get the chance. His album is currently available from his website for the low low price of £10.00 (plus P&P) or £7.49 as a digital download.www.tombaxter.co.uk
