When Dandy Brown's first solo album hit the streets I was
taken aback by the beauty he had created. Sure, I know about his rather
brilliant past and what he is capable of doing. Still, 'Damned To The Heels Of
Success' knocked me over the head in a great way. So when 'Scattered Days' was
declared to be on its way I was, of course, anxious to hear what was in store.
What he created on the debut is certainly present. A full
electric band back him up but despite this the music has a more somber feel
this time around. And it’s beautiful! The compositions are abstemious, very
hypnotic while bringing a sense of moroseness, dejection and sadness, as well
as hope. And it requires an extraordinary songsmith like Dandy to pull this
off. Let’s not forget his voice, which is akin to a mix of Mark Lanegan and
Chris Goss’ bastard child, which helps immensely to unleash the feelings and
emotions on display here.
The songs that stands out the most for me on ‘Scattered
Days’ are ‘I’ll Be Damned’ which brings to mind early Masters Of Reality and is
one the more rocking tracks out of the nine featured. Gets the groove going
despite its bleak outlook. ‘The Sleeper’ moves back and forth between heavy
hypnotic riffing and soaring, floating melodies making it something else,
something other-worldly. ‘This World’ keeps the badass guitar sound, kind of
like in ‘The Sleeper’, the difference being this one stays full-on rock mode
which complements the darkness within the song. Album closer ‘The Swimmer’ is
more laidback, basically semi-acoustic with big nods towards Neil Young, mainly
vocally but also in the music. Love it!
‘Scattered Days’ is the perfect and logical follow-up to
'Damned To The Heels Of Success', where one great album is succeeded by an even
better recording. That’s what I love and am drawn to by extremely Talented
musicians. They always challenge their listeners, mostly by small yet effective
changes, but enough to expand while retaining their trademark features. Dandy
Brown definitely falls into this category with the amazing ‘Scattered Days’.
Thank you, Dandy!
-Swedebeast
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