Search - Bill Mallonee :: Dear Life

Slow spiral to desolation (Ain't life grand?)

Thomas H. Ayers | Bowie, MD United States | 10/27/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Former Vigilantes of Love frontman Bill Mallonee has been releasing solo albums for three years, and Dear Life, as an album, is perhaps the most rewarding.



The best way to prepare you for the album is to comment on the front and back cover art. The front bears a deceptively inviting drawing of scouts sitting around a campfire and listening to songs. Soft and black, the image evokes childhood memories and happy times. The back cover is a sharp color photo of an aging hand strumming a guitar. We will be led by that hand from cozy security to naked truth.



The Songs: The first six songs are comfortable songs, sort of nostalgic musically. "After All This Dust Settles Down" opens the album with a sincere thank-you to all the folks who placed preorders to support the album. The next two songs are, on the surface, cut from the same cloth, but lines like "and you're wasted now and the whole thing was a lie" prove we will be heading toward the underbelly of Mallonee's heart; Ready and Red-eye is particularly upbeat musically. The next three are wistful love songs with touches of humor ("people sure buy a lot of what doesn't make 'em happy/but our love is money in the bank").



The next two songs are transitional and set us up for the desolation to come. "The Kidz on Drugz (or Life)" is thought-provoking and sad: "and you wanna ask God about things like cancer/but you don't think you'll get much of an answer...and the baggage that we all carry around/has this way of dragging you down." This song reminds me of "Silver Transparent" from Perfumed Letter. "Chameleon Me (Pin My Hope)" is an excellent, upbeat song about getting up off the ground. It would have made a great closer for Dear Life, but the hope hasn't been apprehended yet, so...



On past VOL and Mallonee projects, an album would often end in a lament or dirge. This album has three, each one progressively darker and confessional than the last: they are brilliant, ranking with the best Mallonee's ever done. "I Will Never Be Normal (After This)" takes us from dependence on drugs, both literal and figurative, to dependence on faith: a lyrical masterpiece with one of the best statements of faith I have heard. "I Will Miss You Girl" takes us to the heart of the matter: how love suffers when we suffer for it. All of the props are gone in "Songwriter (Numb)," and Mallonee is most naked here: "I tried to make you like me with some words and a six-string...and even when it got cold, I hardly knew I'd died." After an entire album of counting the cost, Mallonee softly wails.



Overall: The album has a definite cumulative impact. Song by song, the album unwinds like gauze to reveal a wounded heart. Thankfulness spirals downward into emptiness with little outposts of hope along the way. Life can be like this, and yet it is still dear. Highly recommended."

"Dear Life" ..... Dearly Loved

R. Hendee | Norcross, GA USA | 11/07/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Bill Mallonee hooked up with producer John Keane (R.E.M., Cowboy Junkies, Unlce Tupelo, etc., etc., etc.) in Athens, Georgia for the recording of "Dear Life" in the spring of 2004 and it is one of Mallonee's finest to date. A rootsy americana folk record, "Dear Life" strips away the pop sheen of previous efforts (wonderful efforts in their own right!) and gets back to the basics. Word is finally starting to get out about Athens, Ga's best kept secret as evidenced by the reviews here, on the AllMusicGuide site and in various national publications. The stellar reviews are well deserved and long overdue as I'm sure you'll attest after buying this CD."

The best from Mallonee since "Audible Sigh"

Stephen Bobbett | 10/29/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These songs are deeply reflective and beautifully haunting, an honest outpouring of the songwriter's heart. Most of the tracks feature no bass or percussion, which gives the album a very intimate feel, sort of like gathering around a fire and listening to someone tell stories. Its simplicity lends it an atmospheric grace. The best music I've heard from Mallonee since "Audible Sigh," and I think you will be moved by it."