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MATT EDWARDS
www.mattedwardsmusic.com
Hailing from the south of England, singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Matt Edwards has arrived with his debut solo record, 'Follow the Plan', a purely blues affair. Let me begin with the positives first. Production-wise, the album sounds fantastic. There's no Pro Tools polishing or false-sounding sonics here. Edwards opted to record everything on analogue tape (and live to boot) in The Grange Residential studios in Norfolk. As such, each of the seven tracks that constitute 'Follow the Plan' has a wonderfully warm, organic sound that helps emphasise the raw emotion on Edwards' playing. And his playing is another positive. Apart from additional vocals/guitar courtesy of Mitch Laddie on 'What Else You Gonna Do?', Edwards is responsible for everything else of every track - drums, bass, guitar and vocals. His fretboard work is quite impressive; the guy's a natural player and utilises blues scales with much skill to communicate a whole range of emotions. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for his vocals...which brings me nicely onto the negatives. Well, the negative to be precise as his singing (in)ability is my only real criticism of 'Follow the Plan' and brings the whole thing crashing down. Edwards doesn't have a great blues voice. Worse, he doesn't have a great voice. He sings with passionate intent although there's way too many dissonant tones in his delivery as he wavers in and out of tune within each lyrical line 'sung'. Perhaps his vocal style would work better in a folk context where mild discordance is an established idiom. Here, though, it doesn't work which is an incredible shame given the quality of the music. Perhaps he'll refine the use of his voice over time on future efforts or maybe he should attempt a blues/folk fusion where his vocals would fit better...hang on, what do we have here as an album closer.? 'Poor Man's Lie' is just such a thing, folky blues...but no, the dissonance of his voice still fails to work. If you're prepared to suffer some subpar singing then 'Follow the Plan' is still well worth checking out.
LABEL:
FORMAT:
Matt Edwards Music
Album
FOLLOW THE PLAN
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Review by Mark Holmes
RUNNING TIME:
38:28
RELEASE DATE:
18th June 2012
TRACK LISTING
1) A Whole Heap of Trouble
2) Be Free
3) Hearing Poems
4) Standing in a Storm
5) What Else You Gonna Do?
6) Under a Leash
7) Poor Man's Lie
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:
UK
"His fretboard work is quite impresive; the guy's a natural player and utilises blues scales with much skill to communicate a whole range of emotions. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for his vocals..."
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