OKComputer1016
07/27/08, 10:37 AM
The Diplomat - This is My Mountain
Record Label: None
Release Date: May 23, 2008
The ever-expanding genre of alternative folk has seen many significant entries in the past couple of years with Against Me! at the top of the hierarchy of radio and commercial success. On the underground flip-side of that market (where Against Me! promised to stay forever), you can find some pretty heartfelt guys strumming and belting it out – but you’ve got to know where to look. The Diplomat’s take on that acoustic-driven field is worth hearing a few times for sure. It’s not going to be on anybody’s favorite 2008 records lists, but you wouldn’t hold it against your iTunes if it shuffled to one of these tracks every now and then.
The reason why nothing on This is My Mountain can quite live up to its potential is the vocals. They’re not bad enough to be intentionally bad or quirky bad, and they’re not good enough to be good good; they just sound like some guy in his car singing along to the radio. Don’t get me wrong: there’s nothing cringe-worthy anywhere on the disc, but you just kind of wish that some producer would have pointed the guy in the right direction. But if you listen a few times to the album you can start to get past it (tt helps to not listen to “The Misadventures of Emily Radcliff,” a particularly bad vocal assault).
The songs are pretty solid from beginning to end. The trendy Game Boy-synth that ushers in “Hot Bizzness” is a nice touch because it clashes against the golden oldies feel of the other instruments. It’s like the old meeting the new – plus it’s one of the better vocal tracks on the album, so it stands out as This is My Mountain’s finest moment. Similar flourishes enhance most of the other tracks; I particularly like the ballpark organ and xylophone in “Sleep On It.”
For a smaller band (one that sent me a burned CD in construction paper slipcase for review), The Diplomat has got some great sound quality. The production is really professional, placing each instrument in the spotlight where it’s needed; the synth is always in perfect balance behind the guitars and vocals. The drums always have the right amount of punch, and the bass maintains its identity as well. There’s no complaints in the mix – the disc is pretty well put together.
Against Me!, Titus Andronicus, Bright Eyes
myspace.com/thediplomatband (http://www.myspace.com/thediplomatband)
Record Label: None
Release Date: May 23, 2008
The ever-expanding genre of alternative folk has seen many significant entries in the past couple of years with Against Me! at the top of the hierarchy of radio and commercial success. On the underground flip-side of that market (where Against Me! promised to stay forever), you can find some pretty heartfelt guys strumming and belting it out – but you’ve got to know where to look. The Diplomat’s take on that acoustic-driven field is worth hearing a few times for sure. It’s not going to be on anybody’s favorite 2008 records lists, but you wouldn’t hold it against your iTunes if it shuffled to one of these tracks every now and then.
The reason why nothing on This is My Mountain can quite live up to its potential is the vocals. They’re not bad enough to be intentionally bad or quirky bad, and they’re not good enough to be good good; they just sound like some guy in his car singing along to the radio. Don’t get me wrong: there’s nothing cringe-worthy anywhere on the disc, but you just kind of wish that some producer would have pointed the guy in the right direction. But if you listen a few times to the album you can start to get past it (tt helps to not listen to “The Misadventures of Emily Radcliff,” a particularly bad vocal assault).
The songs are pretty solid from beginning to end. The trendy Game Boy-synth that ushers in “Hot Bizzness” is a nice touch because it clashes against the golden oldies feel of the other instruments. It’s like the old meeting the new – plus it’s one of the better vocal tracks on the album, so it stands out as This is My Mountain’s finest moment. Similar flourishes enhance most of the other tracks; I particularly like the ballpark organ and xylophone in “Sleep On It.”
For a smaller band (one that sent me a burned CD in construction paper slipcase for review), The Diplomat has got some great sound quality. The production is really professional, placing each instrument in the spotlight where it’s needed; the synth is always in perfect balance behind the guitars and vocals. The drums always have the right amount of punch, and the bass maintains its identity as well. There’s no complaints in the mix – the disc is pretty well put together.
Against Me!, Titus Andronicus, Bright Eyes
myspace.com/thediplomatband (http://www.myspace.com/thediplomatband)