Broken-hearted homage to Tin Pan Alley, Nilsson, Randy Newman and more
The old-time vibes in Matt Dorrien’s music are unmistakable. The influence of Nilsson is the top-line note, but the archness of Randy Newman, the melancholy of Elliot Smith and Brian Wilson, the introspection of Paul Simon, and Paul McCartney’s penchant for British music hall aren’t far below the surface. After a pair of folk-influenced guitar-based albums recorded as Snowblind Traveler, Dorrien returned to his first instrument, piano, and crafted a set of tunes whose optimistic melodies belie the broken heart that sparked their creation.
The immediate fallout of the breakup is captured in “I Can’t Remember,†but the bottom is found in the post-romance doldrums of “Baby I’m So Lost.†The latter suggests an emotional cul de sac whose only apparent escape is an unlikely reconciliation. The post-breakup phone call of “All I Wanted to Say†attempts the impossible navigation of friendship lost amid romantic dissolution, and the boozy “Mister Pour Another†does its best to literally drown Dorrien’s sorrows.
There are pickups and one night stands in “Pretty Little Thing†and “Underwear Blues,†but their salve proves to be temporary. The actual path to recovery begins with the album’s title track, and blooms into conscious thought with the Ted Mosby-like faith of “Maybe This Time.†The vulnerability of Dorrien’s public confrontation with his emotions provides an intimate connection for the fraternity of the dumped, and while it’s an engaging listen at any time, it will resound especially well in your own emotional cul de sac. [©2018 Hyperbolium] 