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When Dreams Come True
CMMP (2013)
It didn't take more than a minute or two into the first
playing for me to realize that Curtis Macdonald's When Dreams Come True was something special. After the first four
songs, I also realized that the album was clearly one of my favorites of 2013.
After getting through the entire recording, I sat there and my main thought was
"Why oh why have I not heard of this guy until now?" This is
Macdonald's 17th release! Why was this guy not on my radar? Well, he damn sure
is now!
Macdonald refers to this album as being centered round
romance. "A collection of memorable relaxed rhythmic ballads that is
emotional and tender with reflections of love, hope and remembrance." However,
from my perspective, When Dreams Come
True is more than just what Macdonald describes. It's a world class
assortment of chill-out/downtempo tunes that are polished to a chromium sheen;
this album, my friends, is why the term "ear candy" was coined. The
melodies (almost always featuring piano in the lead) are one killer hook after
another and the rhythms and beats are ultra-smooth and ridiculously infectious.
Production values are flawless. The mix (by Tony Ugval) places everything in
perfect location in the sound field and is superbly balanced. Every note, every
ambient texture, every keyboard fill, every beat and pulse is recognizable as being separate from
everything else, yet the blending is such that while you can pick out
the individual instruments, you can also just melt into the total package of
each of these 12 luxuriously chilled tracks.
As I absorbed the music deeper through my ten-plus playings
of this CD, I came to "hear" that, yes, romance is a lynchpin of the
recording. It's not just exemplified in the song titles ("Holder of My
Heart," "We Have Each Other," "With a Love like Ours")
but also in the melodies which are always of a smooth, flowing nature with
rich, usually with warm major key lead refrains. However, this emphasis on
"love" does not detract from what is the album's musical strength,
i.e. extremely catchy tunes enhanced with spot-on application of assorted
"lite electronica" and buoyed by chill-out/downtempo beats that add
catchy, toe-tapping rhythms without ever veering away from the overall good-nature
of the music itself. When Dreams Come
True should evoke comparisons to contemporaries such as Dave Mauk, David
Wahler, and Ryan Farish, and to a lesser extent, Davol. Macdonald is never as revved
up as some of these artists (especially Davol), so this CD is a must-play for
those who are hungry for late night chill-out tuneage with a dash of
sophistication, a mellow vibe, and just the right amount of sensuality to be
noticeable but not overpowering. Whether you are courting someone new over
cocktails in your downtown loft at midnight or renewing a long-time love in
front of a roaring fire in a cabin up north, When Dreams Come True will fill the air with an air of romance
without one ounce of schmaltz, syrup or overkill.
Singling out individual tracks for inclusion in this review
is a tough call. The opening "All Roads Lead to You" starts with a
reverbed piano line over fluid, flowing synth washes before the mid-tempo chill
beats emerge and percolate away, bringing to mind the image of cruising down a
country highway with the sun setting against rolling hills in the distance.
Somber synth strings kick off "Holder of My Heart" and the
quasi-glitchy beats and melancholic piano melody drape a veil of subdued
romance over the prelude, while the main body of the song amps up the rhythms
with some thumping bass. Macdonald has an unbelievable knack for writing
melodies that sound heartfelt yet accessible, sweet but never sappy. Buzzing,
whirring retro synths open "Diamonds in the Night Sky" along with
Sputnik-ish bleeps, then the piano comes into the picture, as well as the
midtempo trap kit beats, and the evocation is of walking underneath a canopy of
stars, perhaps along a tropical beach. "Through a Painter's Eyes"
starts off low-key with just piano and bass - very ballad-like - but a
semi-lounge motif is introduced via various keyboard sounds and subdued but
faster tempo rhythms.
Well, I could go on and on. However, in some ways, words can't
convey that, while the literal written description of each track may infer
that each song sounds somewhat the same (piano lead melody, synth
textures, midtempo chill-out beats), each track is absolutely distinct and
different. Because each track is structured around the same core elements, the
album's continuity and cohesion are tight and solid. When Dreams Come True can be enjoyed either piece-by-piece or all
at once. The main thing, though, is to pick up on it and start enjoying it!
The album is available from CDBaby, Amazon.com and iTunes.
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