Written by Lauren Rosier
Rock star, Andrew Reed, spent over a year in isolation in preparation for his latest record, As a Bird of the Air… and what came out of it is the new record, released on April 17.
Reed is a super-creative, guitarist, and recording artist, who apparently is so out there, he is known as the ‘Outlier.’ Frustrated with modern recording studios, Reed decided to build a 3-level, state-of-the-art, remote recording compound on top of a mountain. The compound is surrounded by 12,000 acres of game lands, where visiting artists could reside, and take in nature for inspiration.
Reed begins the album with a quick, 1:26 song introducing his record. Now, upon first listen, I wasn’t quite sure what to think. The album, however, quickly took a turn for the better. The first single, “Strangers,” is a high-energy, rock song with punchy, electric guitars, and classic 80’s rock vocals. The song sounds like it came straight out of ‘80s rock. The electric guitars sound fantastic; they don’t sound like they are turned up too much, but have a level sound, so the vocals and instruments can both be heard.
Continuing with the modern 80’s flavor, is the track “Escape.” I love the true 80’s vibe throughout the song. It’s awfully reminiscent of artists like Bryan Adams and Bon Jovi and their music from the ’80s.
On “Too Little Too Late,” Reed slows it down a little bit but still leaves that great ‘80s rock sound. I really enjoy the beginning of the track: it has a mellower opening but makes way for a large, radio-friendly chorus.
The track “Memory” really slows things down. I love the instrumentation, the tempo of the song breaks things up a bit compared to some of the other tracks at the beginning of the LP. Reed sings “oh please/don’t become a memory/on me/you’re not the memory that I need…”
“Take My Hand (By The Sea)” is a lovely, synth-heavy song to a significant other or love interest. Many of the songs do sound similar, however, Reed is able to make small tweaks to give each song his own touch. He sings “please take my hand/take my heart/we’ll be closer/than ever you had thought…”
On “Talk To Me,” he takes a different approach. The sound is different than some of the other songs. The sound is unique and nothing like any of the other songs on the album. When you have an album and several songs blend together without many differences, a song like “Talk To Me” really breaks up the album well.
Reed ends the album with the track, “Another Time Another Place.” The track is a little bit darker and more melancholy than some of the other songs. The differences help to separate the songs, but with the last song on the album, I would’ve wanted to end it with one of the strongest songs on the album. To really end it with a bang. I think that he has the talent, the musical prowess to do so, it just wasn’t exactly on this record.
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