SOUTH INDIES TEXT & MUSIC PUBLISHING
Chrysanthemum Storm Media Pack
Review by NZ vinyl aficionado Grant Smithies.
Advance Publicity One Sheet (pdf)
Streaming of album for review (download available)===Stream/Download===
Insert of lyric sheet Side A containing words and photos (pdf)
Insert of lyric sheet Side B containing words and photos (pdf)
Front cover image (web quality, 72ppi)
Front cover image (print quality, 300ppi)
from REVIEW OF CHRYSANTHEMUM STORM by Vinyl aficionado Grant Smithies
Losers Weepers [is] the stand out track for me, if only because it’s the
most relatable to someone with my generational disposition. Losers Weepers
has that rise and fall that fits the Verse Chorus Verse structure of the
Rock songs of my age. That and album opener Nobody’s Fault.
There are pieces of Pink Floyd-like experimentation. Like the Psychedelic
Rock jam without the Psychedelic aspect, with the group in tune to each
other’s vibrations enough to not devolve into a free-form Jazz session.
There are husky voiced Leonard Cohen like stories, narrated by Direen, no
doubt a poet in another life. Emotion where emotion is due. A whisky, a
cigar and a reverie. Reflections on times and peoples gone by. Songs that
are real, not candy coated and auto-tuned, that exist to shift units.
There are pieces that feel like an observational comedian standing in a
bingo hall or dive bar (before they were cool) or empty Honky-Tonk floor,
narrating the lives of the patrons. Character Studies and word play and
humour. A good synopsis of the album.
I’m not the target audience here, I’m not part of the niche market, but
that’s OK. I can find references and relatable aspects in the music that I
can enjoy. If you remember the band, you’ll probably enjoy it too, or if
you’re from the world before our collective imagination and attention span
were wiped clean by the instant gratification streaming music and
cellphones provide. If anything it’s got me interested in the documentary
I saw advertised, just to see the creative process behind the band, and
the man, the legend, Bill Direen.
Thanks to Musik.net BACK TO THE TOP
