Search - Mitch Easter :: Dynamico

Dynamico, Indeed

Robert M. West | Starkville, MS | 06/13/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"_Dynamico_ is terrific, at least as good as anything by Let's Active, and certainly more consistently buoyant: as the title suggests, this is a loud, fun record. The rocking "1 1/2 Way Street" kicks things off with a bang; that and tracks such as "Time Warping," "You/Me," "Ton of Bricks," and "Sights Set on Heaven" give the album's first half a harder edge than most of Easter's earlier work. But he heads into gentler (and in some ways more interesting) territory in the second half, with songs such as "To Be, Cool Thing," "The Phantoms of Ephemera," and the appropriately titled "Glazed." Musically, the songs are all insidiously catchy; lyrically, they range from straightforward sentiment (as in the built-for-radio "I Want a New Scene") to dazzling word salad (as in "Sudden Crown Drop").



It really is a solo record. Eric Marshall plays drums on one song, and Shalini Chatterjee plays bass on another (in addition to singing backup here and there), but Easter does everything else. And he does it very, very well: of course his guitar work is fantastic, but he's also an exciting bassist and drummer, unlike other guitarists-turned-one-man-bands. Then there's the sitar on "Glazed"; in his hands the instrument really shimmers the way it ought to. Add the saxophones, the organs, the synthesizers.... In the Let's Active days Easter was obviously a gifted musician, but now he really seems like an alt-rock Mozart.



"

Worth waiting for.

G. Harwell | Birmingham, AL United States | 03/14/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Great cd. If you have been waiting 20 years for Mitch Easter to release new material like I have, wait no more. Good clean rock and roll. Mature release from a mature artist. I hope he pulls more from the vault to release..."