steering clear of the mainstream
since 2001

june 2010

review
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info opinion

David DeMordaunt

"Blackbird's Lullaby" CD

Temuin Records

Genres: acoustic rock, classic rock

November 2006

Acoustic rock singer/songwriter David DeMordaunt has a decent set of self-released records out, and Blackbird's Lullaby is his latest. Drawing from classic rock influences like the Moody Blues and Jethro Tull, he comes up with technically solid songs that aren't really up my alley, but are certainly strong pieces of music in their own right. Mood and technique are first and foremost on DeMordaunt's list of priorities, and it shows. The only reason epics like "Virtue's Reward" or eight-and-a-half-minute "Made For Another World" succeed is because of their varying dynamics and melodies, peaking and valleying appropriately for the music's climaxes and build-ups. The record can become a bit much over its hour-long duration, as DeMordaunt's style remains more or less constant throughout (only so many guitar solos and asses-out climaxes can fit on one album), but if this is the type of stuff you're into then that homogeneity probably will be more of an asset than a problem.

75%

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 13 tracks, 38:53, distributed by CD Baby, released 2006]