projected twin
Reviewed by: Dorothy Pawlowski
Published: 13 October 2010
lp: earth to world
Now this is CD has a bit of an adventure story behind it, it seems, and I think, perhaps, there’s a little of that adventure, that worldliness that shows through in the music. Projected Twin is mostly, it seems, the project of one Shaun Holton, Adelaide native recently returned from several years doing club gigs in Oman, Thailand, Iraq, Indonesia, and the USA, including a 6 month residency at the Dubai Hard Rock Café.
According to Mr Holton he had “got to the point where I wasn't really given an opportunity to create music without having to worry about 3-4 people's opinions or artistic flair being trampled on.” So naturally enough he decided to spend 3 or so years writing and producing something over which he could have total control and direction, and quite a labour of love it sounds to have been at that. Pre release internet tracks have apparently netted the band (if band it be) upwards of 16000 fans worldwide before even a disc hits a shelf and, on listening to the product, it’s easy to see why.
This is a very professionally constructed CD: the cover art is excellent, featuring moody, dreamy graphics that perfectly mirror the tone of the sounds concealed within. The audio production is similarly top quality, everything sounds big and rich, bass notes are deep, guitars crunch or sing, synths and samples blend seamlessly with the other instruments. There are excellent performances too by Mr Holton and his collaborators, including particularly capable vocal performances. Check out the Xaphoon on tracks 7 and 9, had to Google that one to discover that it’s a bamboo saxophone (!) from Hawaii adds a nice 21st Century Eastern influence.
Musically? Well Mr Holton affirms that his intention is to convey the message that “making a difference is achievable”, and that the “Projected Twin” is perhaps the listener. So think personal, intimate, impressionist, and personally political, something like late Pink Floyd. And musically this is the sort of area we’re in, some good atmospheric soundscapes and an underlying tension that is maintained throughout, bursting out into hard rock or even some actual metal riffs that border on death or hardcore (well, almost). It’s refreshing to hear such well crafted and atmospheric segments, such as the sample/synth driven “Try” juxtaposed with more commercial rock sounds like “Deny” or “I’d Fall for Anything”. In fact I’m finding myself loving some of these sounds and some of the arrangements even as I’m somewhat disappointed by the more commercial hooks and rock-ballad type stuff. It’s purely a matter of taste; overall this is an excellent release and really moving and hooky and I know a hell of a lot of people are going to really, and I mean really, dig it a lot!
