On “Had to Lose,” you can feel the soft leather of remorse when McCalmon tells us, “I still smell her sweet perfume of the collar of my winter coat.” A cymbal-only backbeat and a finger-picked acoustic with some atmostpheric keys open the song before opening up into a moog-filled chorus. That’s right: “I had to lose before I learned to love you.”
Organ fills and crescendos combine with a glockenspiel mirrored by bits of acoustic and classical guitar picks. The levels in the production are pretty interesting, a subtle touch guiding what’s to the fore and what’s sitting just a breath below. The drums ring out crisp and assured while McCalmon reaches for the falsetto. Every once in a while you can hear the room that surrounds his vocals, like he’s bending away from the microphone.
Castleton’s spacy keys, like Jamiroquai aping Stevie Wonder, keep the song moving late, as McCalmon does a lot of that R&B-style of singing where he’s just doing it to have the voice stay in the mix and so repeats the same lyric over and over.
This can be grating on some people, but I like the Police and the White Stripes, so that kind of thing is clearly right up my alley.
He could take a breath every once in a while, though. After the great second part of “Walking Away” chorus, where he alters his delivery like he’s changing his mind, he launches right into the next verse when I would have really liked a ripping solo. There should definitely be more ripping solos on this album. It could be more fun than it is. It’s a little down in the mouth, when it could be a little up in the corner of the mouth.
The song finishes with a great bridge leading into a final chorus that includes just a dash of backing vocals for the first time in the song, lending a narrative character. He introduces a swagger, bending his vocals where he’s normally pretty even-keeled.
If there’s anywhere he breaks from McNaboe, it’s in a reluctance to go full-on gospel.
The lack of theatrics reminds me of Percy Hill’s most recent album, After All. I couldn’t pick a song for a single. It’s not about the hook. These songs play out and are enjoyable as dinner music (or after dinner music, for that matter), but you might not be bumpin’ this on the headphones while you work out.
Come Home
Released by Ryan McCalmon | www.ryanmccalmon.com | plays Milly’s Tavern, in Manchester NH, with Pete Kilpatrick, Pete Francis (Dispatch), and the Whatnot | Friday, Feb 3 | 603.625.4444
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On the Web:
Ryan McCalmon: http://www.ryanmccalmon.com
Email the author:
Sam Pfeifle:sam_pfeifle@yahoo.com
