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Albert Hammond Jr. - Yours to Keep
- The solo album from the Strokes guitarist, Albert Hammond Jr’s Yours to Keep has hypnotic melodies and whimsical ballads. The son of a '70s singer/composer, that influences shine through on the album as it takes you through a magical journey of mind bending and relaxing sounds.
“Cartoon Music For Superheroes” is an enthralling song that has guitar play from Hammond, Josh Lattanzi, Greg Lattimer and Marc Philippe Eskenazi along with toy piano and drum play from Hammond, and Matt Romano also lends his drum playing skills to the track. The music is somewhat childlike as Hammond expounds and dispels juvenile fantasies, with lines such as, “Goodnight I said too, goodnight...And when you wake you’ll see that all these dreams are fake.” Hammond’s voice sounds hazy as if he himself is rousing from a dream and recounting his feelings.
“In Transit” has speedy guitar work from Hammond, Lattanzi, Lattimer and Eskenazi and bass work from Chris Feinstein, Sean Lennon, Lattanzi, Julian Casablancas, Mikki James and Lattimer. The track has a road trip quality to it, with lines such as, “I’m not gonna change till I want to and I’m free…I’m not gonna change till I want to and I’m free and the way she looked I should have calmed down, I went too far that’s all I have to say.” It seems Hammond is having misgivings about actions he made and the consequences might have been detrimental to a certain female. His voice has a latent pain that is fermenting just beneath the surface.
On “Everyone Gets a Star,” there is rhythmic guitar play from Hammond, Lattimer, Lattanzi and Eskenazi, and the drum work from Romano is seismic. One can picture walking down the Hollywood Walk of Fame while listening to this song on their MP3 player. Hammond’s voice is somber as he emotes about the issues of celebrities and how he is saying to those on the outside, all may seem perfect but it’s all a mirage. Hammond seems to be trying to convey some hidden anguish, with lines like, “Won’t you go back to where you go I want you to forever know. These guys have all got problems, these guys have all got their problems. Today you’ve come out go away, I know it gets so confusing sometimes. It all seems to drag me down. Then when I’m getting closer, so close everything all falls apart.” This song tells the dark side of prominence and sometimes it isn’t as glamorous as people think.
On “Bright Young Thing,” Hammond emotes about a girl and describes her attributes with keen adjectives, yet it seems he is also trying to take advantage of her, in lines such as, “I wander, wandering all around this big place I live. She was scared to go outside where it once felt so nice to me…So you walk a little everyone know that you over and over and over and over again. You’re pretty won’t you come play with me this time I’ll be nice. You can’t trust what I say to you I know they're all lies, do you?” It’s like a preemptive warning by Hammond to this girl saying he is no good and that she should steer clear of him, yet at the same time he is trying to lure her in with his bewitching voice and complements.
Albert Hammond Jr’s Yours to Keep is a melodious album filled with varied tones and rhythms. He is distinguishing himself from the Strokes and portrays a singular sound. With this album, he seems to be ready to put his earmark on the music industry in his own right.
Reviewer: Sari N. Kent
new
Reviewer's Rating: 9
Reader's Rating: 10.00
Reader's Votes: 1
Added: 7-Apr-2007
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