Audrye Sessions – Audrye Sessions

The archetype of what is popular is inconsistent at best, but very few critics can deny the products of hard work and a solid grasp on what is “catchy” – not to mention smart – to merit the title of being interesting, if nothing else. On their self-titled debut from Black Seal, Audrye Sessions prove to the listener their ability to create a versatile disc that will undoubtedly find its way in the hands of others.

Pristinely recorded and innovatively instrumented, Audrye Sessions is a decent listen throughout most of the album. But the self-titled’s sonic abilities hardly qualify it as an amazing spin. The album wavers from solid rock songs to cliché alternative rock ballads that prove more of a challenge than a privilege to listen to. The lyrics play a large role in these aforementioned let downs. Lead singer Ryan Karazija weaves familiar stories with even more familiar imagery that take away from the grandeur of the instrumentation in many of the songs. In particular, acoustic/piano ballad “New Year’s Day” falters due to the quality of the lyricism, stealing from the beautiful soundscape crafted by the delicate guitars and dreamy piano lines.

However, “New Year’s Day” is one of many examples of smartly arranged tracks to be found here. “Where You’ll Find Me” also stands out, featuring a majestic horn and string section that lends the track an epic quality that could be achieved in no other way. In “Nothing Pure,” the band uses a hypnotic bass-driven and percussion-complimented bridge to build up into an emotionally charged guitar lead that adds a heavy taste to the album, showing off the band’s ability to mix the experimental with heavy rock and still maintain a tasteful perception on what sounds good.

The musical juxtaposition of the melodic indie ballad “Crows Came In” and the heavy, driving “Dust and Bones” serves as the perfect ending to this album; both songs exhibit Audrye Sessions’ ability to create a radio-friendly song that will not push those looking for a little more away. The horn and string solo at the end of the latter is enough to leave the listener with a curiosity that will promise the repetition of the whole album.

Unfortunately, after the first listen one might find the less interesting songs to lean more on the boring side. Songs like “Perfect Sometimes” and “New Year’s Day” prove to be a bit harder to listen to over and over again and spoil the atmosphere of the album. However, songs like “Julianna,” “Where You’ll Find Me” and “Dust and Bones” quickly win the listeners over with their interesting constructs. “Julianna” contains a catchy chorus with an interesting vocal arrangement of layered harmonies that adds spice to the song.

As a listener we can not assume an album to be wholly perfect, such notions would be pretentious, but to expect a good album to be something fresh is perfectly understandable. Audrye Sessions’ self-titled debut provides the freshness needed to classify it as a solid alt-rock release. While the album tends to lean towards the catchier end of the spectrum this album is not with out its faults. Typical lyrics and boring images make some of the songs a little less enjoyable and cause the flow of the album to be skewed a little. Overall, however, the album proves to be a worthy listen.

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Tagged as: Alternative Rock, Oakland

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