Dead Artist Syndrome

Item: Happy Hour
Author: Robert Berman

Happy Hour

(1995)

Reviewed by Robert Berman

Discogs Bandcamp

Label Alarma RecordsThe LighthouseSeptember 1995

alternative rock gothic rock post-punk

I must confess that I've never quite fathomed the mystique which has come to surround Brian Healy, the driving force of Dead Artist Syndrome. While I find his work passable and generally listenable, other circles in Christian music continue to bestow accolades like "Best Alternative Artist" upon him on a regular basis, it seems. This album does little to change my opinion regarding him, but if you liked the previous two DAS albums, then Happy Hour will probably provide you with many hours of happy listening.

Healy once again brings in the 77s to be his band, which for some will be a good enough reason in itself to spring for this album; 77s fans will recognize the key riff from "Look" at the end of "Bride Song." Mike Roe's guitar talents seem a little squandered flailing at garage-band power chords, and Aaron Smith's drumming is sorely missed; some of the drum programming appears to be taken straight from the presets on my Casio keyboard. Healy's three-chord melodies are as simple as ever, and his uniquely spooky voice remains somewhat off-key, but DAS fans will consider these to be "features" of his style, not "bugs." Only on "USA" does the album really get annoying, with an endless "ba-ba-ba" in the background parodying the Beach Boys.

So what is there to recommend this album? Healy's iconoclastic lyrics remain a key draw. Ironic lines like "I guess I'll never be content like all the people on the radio," in "Radiation" poke fun at mainstream Christian music, and "Bride Song" is a witty lament about the modern church, with Healy crying "Jesus, I love you, but I can't understand your wife!" in a campy pseudo-Europunk turn. In the liner notes, Healy comments that he intended this album to be a clear statement of Christian faith, and from Billy Graham quotations to song content, he makes good on his word while keeping things slightly bent.

Of the three DAS albums, this is the one I'd have little qualms about paying full price for instead of waiting for it to roll onto the discount rack (as I fear it will, based on his commercial track record). Healy seems to treat his songs mainly as a vehicle for his dry, wry lyrics, and on those terms this album succeeds. If nothing else, Healy is one of the few writers in Christian music who can really get me both laughing and thinking, and that kind of talent deserves to be supported.