Andy Shauf
Darker Days
P is For Panda
6/10
Andy Shauf is a mystery man. There are few traces of the singer-songwriter on the Net, and the folk musician isn’t exactly known for giving interviews. Yet the Canadian has garnered his own, small following with his blend of folk and hard rock. Now he’s poured all that introspection into a new album Darker Days, a mix of acoustic and electric guitar, and a few samples for fair measure. However the record ultimately proves to be derivative and underwhelming.
The two highlights of the album (at least in my opinion), “The Greatest Moments” and “Were You In Love With Me,” are bookends of happiness and gloom. The former, an up tempo ditty about romantic love, and the latter, a song of dejection full of distorted guitars and vaunted F chords worthy of the Smashing Pumpkins, show that Shauf has heart. Yet in many respects they are the exception to the rule, and to get to them listeners must endure a sea of sleepers that have more in common with poetry written by six graders than the nuanced lyrics of a troubadour. That doesn’t mean that every song on the record is bad. Just most of them.
In defense of Shauf, it is his first album, and he does score points here and there (the grungy guitar chords and sampling of road traffic on “Gone” would never be attempted by contemporaries such as John Mayer). Yet unlike Mayer, he faces the danger of being left behind in the thicket of similar artists like him. The fact that he has a silky smooth voice- like Mayer- doesn’t help him too well either. Neither does the fact that he tries too hard to emulate some of his more famous peers. It’s hard enough being talented without being compared to someone else.
Hopefully, this isn’t the last we’ve heard from him- emphasis on the word “hopefully”. The guy can carry a note, and unlike most “musicians” he can actually play an instrument. In four years time he might be worth paying attention to. But not Darker Days, not by a long shot.
If you’re looking for something to fill your CD collection by all means buy it. Otherwise, pass it up.
–John Winn