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review by Bill Binkelman Electronic keyboard player Bill McGee has taken a few steps forward from his previous recording under the pseudonym Compsure (DreamState) with this self-titled release. Once again, the artist shows his considerable composing skills across a variety of new age, CEM (contemporary electronic music), and adult contemporary styles, but this time his production quality is somewhat improved (although he could still benefit from having his album mastered by a third party, which I believe will be the case with his next recording). What sets McGee's work apart from others is how assuredly he traverses a variety of moods and how his music is catchy and accessible without resorting to an overtly "radio-friendly" motif. "Falling Skies" which opens the album is a good example, as the piece combines multi-tracked sparkling Chaquico-like guitar samples with soaring keyboards. While the music is not structured like a pop song, with the typical verse-verse-chorus-bridge format, it still has melodic refrains that grab the listener's attention. There are twelve tracks on Composure and many of them are winners. From the midtempo percussion-laced "Oceanic" to the haunting beauty of "The Day Wouldn't Rain," (bearing some resemblance to Patrick O'Hearn but with less reliance on bass rhythms), to the quasi-ambient " A Breath Within," (probably the most subdued track here) to the powerful pounding rhythms and dramatic electronics of "Tanka," to the twinkling sunshower tones of "Silk Sky," resplendent in quasi-Berlin soaring keyboards, dynamic drum programming and cascading bells, there is an assortment of enjoyable music to be heard on the CD. The album isn't perfect, though. A few songs are less polished than others and, again, while McGee has cleaned up the technical aspects of his music considerably from DreamState, there are still some EQ problems (notably a shrillness to some highs and a slight mudiness to the overall sound on some tracks). However, these deficiencies are mostly apparent on either headphones or when the music is played loudly through high-end speakers. Played at moderate levels or as background music, you will probably be less aware of these shortcomings. Truthfully, McGee's composing and performing skills are good enough that I personally choose to overlook the engineering maladies. Few artists these days can make good electronic keyboard music that harkens back to artists like Richard Burmer (who, I think, McGee is strongly reminiscent of). These days, you usually have to pick from Berlin school EM, more commercial sounding instrumental pop or the less structured flow of ambient music. Not many folks continue to work in the arena of three to five minute long "songs" that are proud of their overt "classic" new age music roots and an obvious reliance on electronic keyboards to get the job done. Hopefully, once McGee hooks up with a mastering professional, his music can be heard in the best possible light. Just the same, Composure still represents a solid recording of keyboard-oriented accessible music that, if you are forgiving of its slight technical foibles, you will doubtless enjoy. The future looks bright indeed for this talented artist. |
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