Country, New Wave, alternative rock, computer game soundtracks, satirical punk... Terry Taylor has been around several musical blocks over the past two decades. Now seemingly more settled with his position at KMG Records, this recording provides the listener with a sound which shows influences from all his previous work.
The album opens darkly. The string-section backing for "Writer's Block" has a slightly strained feel as Taylor's customarily well-crafted lyrics take a look at questions which confront some of those who choose to express themselves in this medium:
Take all the mud and glory in
The blood that swells my hand
Shake it out with delirium tremors
And guide my palsy pen
Who's impressed enough to follow me?
Please consider now the source
Count my golden vanities
In the fire of remorse
After this dense opener the musical tone lifts somewhat. Surf music has been on Taylor's mind recently with the release of the Surfonic compilation, and that influence is clear, but the sound is more diverse than that. This is highly-produced yet varied rock music that slips past most pigeon holes, as should be expected from a band that reads like a "who's who" of Alternative Christian music. Mike Roe, Andy Prickett, and Derri Daugherty play guitars, Tim Chandler adds his bass skills, Ed McTaggart contributes drums, Gene Eugene is on keyboards, Burleigh Drummond on percussion, and ever-present session man Phil Madeira brings his keyboards, accordion, and lap-steel.
This album should serve as a good resume for Taylor. It may not be his best work, but it is a solid release. Maybe KMG Records will help him win a whole new generation of fans.
4.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
7ball #21Reviewed by Brian Quincy NewcombAs icons come and go, there's probably no better metaphorical image for the spiritual and literal terra firma that is Orange County, Southern California--the conservative Christian stronghold and creative hotbed for most Christian rock and alternative music--than that of John Wayne, the gun-toting movie star, pilgrim in a strange land and model for self-reliant individualism gone awry. On John…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Steven S. BaldwinVirtually every so-called "Christian alternative modern rock" band owes a hearty debt to the granddaddy of ACM, Terry Taylor. After all, when he and his band, Daniel Amos, traded in their cowboy hats and cowpoke tunes for 3-D glasses and smart New Wave pop ditties back in the late seventies, "Christian Music" embarked on a curious, much needed path, raising the creative bar for all to follow.…Similar sounding releases
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