Canvas - Digital Pigeon

Year of Release: 2007
Label: Canvas Productions
Catalog Number: 00261-20977
Format: CD
Total Time: 76:52:00

A myriad of styles permeate Digital Pigeon, the sophomore release from Columbus, Ohio based recording outfit Canvas. Progressive, jazz, and pop influences all make a number of appearances. The disc opens with the sonic imprint of early Camel ("The Dark Side Of The Sun") courtesy of the organ sound, melodic guitar and vocal delivery. "The Spectacle" pumps things up instrumentally, adding flute and some trickier instrumental sections. "Spiders" immediately grabs you with an extremely cool horn arrangement, and solo trumpet within the song. The track takes on a light jazzy flavor during the guitar and keyboard solo sections. "Armchair Voyager" opens with a section that could be mistaken for a Lindsey Buckingham guitar riff, then from left field comes a terrific jazz tinged guitar solo (with some nice harmonizing), and again the horns jump out at you in this one. "Calmsy Downsy" seems to take its vocal style and inflection from the late Chicago vocalist Terry Kath. A 70's vibe is injected into the instrumental "One Second Thought" and the easy going sounds of "Funk Shui" remind me of the band America. The band waits until the end of the CD to throw a few real curveballs at you. "Teen Town" is a bass and drum workout written by the late Jaco Pastorious, revealing another facet of the band's influences. The final track "Move The Earth" show Canvas at their most creative and rocking form, a solid closer. There are many musicians who contribute to this disc, and the music is well played and performed. The use of horns is great, and this could be the key to finding their own voice. The various influences make Canvas a tough band to pigeon hole (pun intended). The biggest issue is with the band's identity, sounding so different from one song to the next will make finding a target audience difficult.

Tracklisting:
Dark Side Of The Sun (6:19) / The Spectacle (7:44) / Spiders (5:12) / Ghost Town (6:31) / Armchair Voyager (4:00) / A Reptile Dysfunction (5:53) / You (5:38) / Calmsy Downsy (5:46) / On Second Thought (6:36) / Catwalk (4:27) / Funk Shui (3:50) / Lost In Transit (6:11) / Teen Town (2:51) / Move The Earth (5:55)

Musicians:
Matt Sweitzer - guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion
Chris Cobel - keyboards, trumpet
Greg Lounsberry - vocals, guitar
John Swope - drums
Tom Mattern - vocals, flute, keyboards, bass, guitar, trumpet, sax
Brian Pierce - acoustic guitar
Brad Cotner - trumpet, trombone
John David Thornton - guitar, bass, Fender Rhodes, keyboards
Zach Olah - vocals
Orlando Blanco - guitars
Bruce Smith - vocals
Vince Simon - drums
Heather McPherson - violin

Discography:
The Rhythm And The Rhyme (promo) (2000)
Avenues (2002)
Digital Pigeon (2007)

Genre: Various Genres

Origin US

Added: April 11th 2007
Reviewer: Eric Porter
Score:
Artist website: www.canvasproductions.net
Hits: 4874
Language: english