Release Date: 6th April 2015
Label: Cherry
Red Records
The
Ancient One finds yet another new band, Blurred Vision, with their debut
release, Organized Insanity, has
landed on the review desk. The band have been backed/endorsed by one Roger
Waters (yes, one of the founding members of Pink Floyd) which has brought them
a fair bit of acclaim, which I have to admit has passed me by totally.
Blurred Vision is a 3 piece band comprising Sepp Osley
(vocals, guitar), Sohl Osley (bass) and Ben Riley (drums), although there is a
guest also listed on the album information, Joel Lightman (keyboards, vocals).
The information from the record company suggests the band has a style that
would be classed as prog/psych/pop rock, which seems to be a fairly wide
grouping.
Organized
Insanity is an 11 track album with a total playing time of around
48 minutes, with the title, and final, track “Organized Insanity” being the
longest on offer at 5:30 minutes. At the other end of the scale, the shortest
track is “All I Wanted” running on for just over 3 minutes (3:21).
The opening track on the album, “No More War” (4:02) is a
slice of very pleasant guitar pop which starts with the voices chanting the
title. The track continues with some very catchy guitar riffs behind the clear
vocals provided by Sepp. Around the halfway point there are media messages
about war behind the catchy themes. Latterly, the music drops away to give a
melancholic trumpet passage, which then builds up to a recurrence of the
opening them. The track leaves with a last chant of the title and has gone.
“Rollin On” (4:35) retains the immediacy of the opening
track but is taken at a slightly slower pace. “Tonight” (3:40) is again a
gentler tempo track with a simple acoustic guitar, piano and vocal starter. The
track builds up to a higher tempo with some excellent drumming and a very
powerful piano presence. This is one of the shorter tracks but it still is very
quick to “get into your head.” “Long May You Run” (4:41) has a drum/organ intro
with more of the crystal clear vocals. This is a very gentle track with some
stunning electric guitar work around the halfway mark.
A return to the more up-tempo driving guitar style on
“The Promise” (4:08) is immediately followed by another acoustic led anti-war
song, “Dear John” (4:26), which although gentler in tempo has more of that
superb lead guitar work. Track No 7, “Arms of our World” (4:26) sees the piano
play a more prominent part in the intro. This is a very harmonious gentler
track with some (synthesized?) strings which provide real depth to the track,
and another of those shimmering guitar passages takes the track out.
“All I Wanted” (3:21) has a very familiar feel to it,
with jangly guitars and a hook line that just gets you right away. Around the 2
minute point there is a wondrous keyboard passage that simply soars. “Wherever
You Are” (3:48) is a step into the gentler piano/guitar arena again, although
after the 1 minute mark the pace builds up and the track drives along.
“The Keeper” (5:11) has the sound of the countryside
fading into a “killer” guitar passage. The vocals appear, but not in English,
although it is the feel that sets the scene and the vocals revert to the norm
after a few moments. Another tremendously catchy track with some of the little
guitar riffs getting under your skin very quickly. Tempo changes and chunky
guitar passages ensure your attention is always kept on the music.
The title track “Organized Insanity” (5:30) has a
symphonic style start with an ascending scale into drums and guitar. The
keyboards continue with a stunning theme before the vocals arrive with some
excellent harmonies. Tempo changes keep your senses on the track as the music
builds and ebbs and flows. There are some terrific chunky guitar riffs and
keyboard/piano themes. Towards the end of the track, the lead guitar gets a
chance to soar, and does exactly that.
This is an immensely enjoyable debut album by a new band,
and I would go more for the psych/pop rock rather that prog as a descriptor of
the music. Not a poor track on the album, with hooks here, there and everywhere
mean that even on a single hearing, some tracks have embedded deep into your
grey matter.
This release, Organized
Insanity, should very quickly increase the fan base of this band. This is
definitely worth a listen, or two, and although I normally suggest making up
your own mind, I feel quite sure that there will be no disappointed listeners.
Watch out for the name, Blurred Vision, becoming a much wider known name in
music circles.
4.5/5
Stars
Key
Tracks: No More War, Long May You Run, Organized Insanity
Tracks:
No More War
Rollin On
Tonight
Long May You Run
Promise
Dear John
Arms Of The World
All I Wanted
Wherever You Are
The Keeper
Organized Insanity
Tracks:
No More War
Rollin On
Tonight
Long May You Run
Promise
Dear John
Arms Of The World
All I Wanted
Wherever You Are
The Keeper
Organized Insanity
Jim “The Ancient One” Lawson-Sr. Reviewer Prog
Rock Music Talk
July 22, 2015
Review
Provided By Write A Music Review