Gilli Moon's review of "No Turning Back"

"No Turning Back," Archdeacon

To be totally honest, I’m very picky when it comes to new albums from independent artists, and I rarely write a music review, but I actually offered the artist to review his album because I enjoyed it so much. Besides, I am proud of our New York member, Steve Archdeacon, in his development and commitment to his artistry that it’s worth writing about. “No Turning Back” takes you on a journey of strength and sensitivity, a really nice surprise from a male artist. New Yorker Steve Archdeacon (artist name "Archdeacon") brings us 7 songs that tell us his personal stories, hopes and emotions, through soft rock guitar driven grooves, well constructed songwriting and strong vocals. From the moment the opening track, “This Moment” starts, we embark on a fast pace guitar rock rhythm that is upbeat and draws you in. Second track, “Paid the Price” is one of my personal favorites as the songwriting is very strong, with a great hook, and yes, and a personable story of a son going away to war and the family wanting them to come home. “They’ve paid the price / they’ve sacrificed / … paid the price for stars and stripes”. Very heart felt. The only feedback I would offer on this song is that the end could have ended sooner (the hook repeated perhaps too many times). Track 3, It’ll always Feel like Yesterday” also struck a chord lyrically for me. Lyrics like “legacy left behind,” “things in life you just can’t forget,” and “yesterday’s gone from me,” confirms when you hear this song that you can’t live in the past yet you just don’t want to forget. Archdeacon really digs deep with his song concepts, and this is refreshing against all the fad pop songs we hear on the radio these days that are as deep as a plate. Archdeacon has created a song order for this album very succinctly, with songs that flow from high energy, to mid, to a soft ballad to even an instrumental with “Cool Chord Instrumental,” which while it doesn’t have an interesting title, is actually quite a superb piece of music featuring guitarist Bryan Mandracchia. I enjoyed the harmonies in the song “Virginia” and I very much enjoyed the chorus and Steve’s sentiment of missing this State. It had an almost Santana vibe with Archdeacon's own lead guitar licks spicing it up throughout this grooving (apparently his first time recording as the lead guitarist!) The production of this album, a co-production with Steve Archdeacon and Paul Andrejack, overall is very impressive. You can hear every note from every instrument and Archdeacon’s voice, while it’s no John Cougar Mellencamp or Bon Jovi in range, it is crystal clear, real and very listenable. So often I hear indie releases where the mix smothers the vocals, or various instruments are just lost. Even with Archdeacon’s “Silent Mood,” which is just him on piano, we hear such clarity and feel his emotion as he’s playing. Kudos to him and his music production team. I also love the piano, so I will say that I very much enjoyed coming to this 6th track to break the intensity and find a moment to go deep. By track 7, the final track “Everything about yourself,” we just about got to know everything about Archdeacon, and so I will end by saying that overall I very much enjoyed Archdeacon’s album as a testament to his story, and his expression. It’s definitely a strong calling card for him as a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. (Review by Gilli Moon, President Songsalive!) www.gillimoon.com Buy the album here: www.cdbaby.com/archdeacon2

Here is the actual link of the review: http://www.songsalive.org/member-reviews-news?mode=PostView&bmi=520739

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