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Night Artery - Capsize Your Surroundings CD REVIEW
The Ripple Effect http://ripplemusic.blogspot.com/
I knew I loved this immediately; I just wasn’t sure which words to use to best express my love for it. In fact, I’m still not sure I know which words to use . . . so I’ll just dive into this. The music is poppy, but progressive, and the production work is crisp and much more polished than one would expect from a traditional D.I.Y. product. But D.I.Y. it is.
The back story of this release goes something along these lines: Night Artery is a one man project, brought to light by the massively talented Ross Arundale. Our hero wanted, like most kids who knew how to play a few chords on their guitar, to be a rocker, faced much disappointment, realized that he had a burning ambition, worked his ass off to make a few bucks so he could afford to do things his way, purchased all of the gear he could, learned how to use it, then wrote, recorded, and produced this, his first release, Capsize Your Surroundings. Seriously. Not even I could make up something like this.
Capsize Your Surroundings is a progressive pop disc, but categories almost feel like a disservice to music as broad and ambitious as this. Ross’ approach to the song writing is unpredictable and unorthodox, as the music sounds unlike anything I’ve heard before. Sure, I can hear a bit of Beatles influence, but strictly in a sonic approach and experimentation, not in song structure or melody. The songs are moody pieces of texturally intense music. No instrument is spared as the good Mr. Arundale incorporates cellos, violins, and piano to accent the typical rock oriented guitar, bass, and drums, but don’t go thinking that this is some classical piece of music. Yeah, there are some pretty heavy symphonic portions to the music, but nothing you have to wear a tuxedo for. It rocks in a poppy kind of way and is simply dripping with amazing melodies. It’s freaking intense, man. There’s so much going on that there’s no possible way to grasp the heaviness of it with just one listen.
I guess one could compare Night Artery to the contemporary soundings of Coldplay, Spoon, or possibly Radiohead, but that comparison would have to be stylistically speaking only, not in overall sound. Capsize Your Surroundings sounds like a huge production team was involved with it, and for that I can only sit here and shake my head. I’ve heard big budget albums sound worse . . . considerably worse. The musicianship here is masterful. The production value is stronger than the American dollar (what isn't these days?) The performances are passionate. The songwriting is unconventional. And, it’s one man doing it on his own. Sometimes, life just isn’t fair.
The Ripple Effect http://ripplemusic.blogspot.com/
I knew I loved this immediately; I just wasn’t sure which words to use to best express my love for it. In fact, I’m still not sure I know which words to use . . . so I’ll just dive into this. The music is poppy, but progressive, and the production work is crisp and much more polished than one would expect from a traditional D.I.Y. product. But D.I.Y. it is.
The back story of this release goes something along these lines: Night Artery is a one man project, brought to light by the massively talented Ross Arundale. Our hero wanted, like most kids who knew how to play a few chords on their guitar, to be a rocker, faced much disappointment, realized that he had a burning ambition, worked his ass off to make a few bucks so he could afford to do things his way, purchased all of the gear he could, learned how to use it, then wrote, recorded, and produced this, his first release, Capsize Your Surroundings. Seriously. Not even I could make up something like this.
Capsize Your Surroundings is a progressive pop disc, but categories almost feel like a disservice to music as broad and ambitious as this. Ross’ approach to the song writing is unpredictable and unorthodox, as the music sounds unlike anything I’ve heard before. Sure, I can hear a bit of Beatles influence, but strictly in a sonic approach and experimentation, not in song structure or melody. The songs are moody pieces of texturally intense music. No instrument is spared as the good Mr. Arundale incorporates cellos, violins, and piano to accent the typical rock oriented guitar, bass, and drums, but don’t go thinking that this is some classical piece of music. Yeah, there are some pretty heavy symphonic portions to the music, but nothing you have to wear a tuxedo for. It rocks in a poppy kind of way and is simply dripping with amazing melodies. It’s freaking intense, man. There’s so much going on that there’s no possible way to grasp the heaviness of it with just one listen.
I guess one could compare Night Artery to the contemporary soundings of Coldplay, Spoon, or possibly Radiohead, but that comparison would have to be stylistically speaking only, not in overall sound. Capsize Your Surroundings sounds like a huge production team was involved with it, and for that I can only sit here and shake my head. I’ve heard big budget albums sound worse . . . considerably worse. The musicianship here is masterful. The production value is stronger than the American dollar (what isn't these days?) The performances are passionate. The songwriting is unconventional. And, it’s one man doing it on his own. Sometimes, life just isn’t fair.
Night Artery - Capsize Your Surroundings CD REVIEW
whisperinandhollerin.com - Tim Peacock
If sheer guts and determination were enough to win the day, then it would be hard to resist giving the gold to NIGHT ARTERY main man Ross Arundale. After all, he self-funded, produced and provided the recording space for his debut EP 'Capsize Your Surroundings' on the back of two years back-breaking work wielding a sledgehammer on the Australian railroad. An unforgiving environment, I should imagine, but not enough to deter our hero, who “never considered a back-up plan.” Respect for this alone is surely due, all things considered.
All too often, though, such Herculean effort can fall on stony ground, when a series of reviewers and the public in general then dash such good intentions on the rocks of indifference. And sometimes they'd be right. After all, great art rarely equates with sweat, toil and graft.
Thankfully, however, 'Capsize Your Surroundings' is – creatively at least – not one of those misfires. Arundale himself plays all the instruments. He treats us to four songs and an unlisted piano track at the end which serves as something of a credit-roller. His label's name 'Cinematical' is certainly relevant, for there's certainly an epic, filmic quality keen to burst out of these tracks. In fact, such is the dramatic sweep of Night Artery's music sometimes I wonder if Ross wrote these songs with a short film in mind, even if it's an imaginary one along the lines of Barry Adamson's atmospheric 'Moss Side Story.'
Opener 'An Act Ill-Informed Of Returns' thrusts you headlong into his widescreen pop. As the title suggests, his music is slightly high-brow and quirky, though it's certainly in touch with great pop too. Perhaps inevitably, the countrymen Ross evokes are the likes of Grant McLennan and David McComb, individuals who were rarely found wanting when evocative imagery was concerned. Arundale has a way with an engaging lyric too (sample: “be wary of thieves...they vie to spill your ardor”) and when he allies such observations to these thrilling, string and piano-assisted soundscapes, he's on to something of a winner.
The rest of the EP maintains these exacting standards. Despite a title more akin to a Guided By Voices out-take, 'Cinematical Shards On The Permanent Way' makes an immediate impact. It's nagging, urgent (not a million miles from mid-period Go-Betweens or even The Smiths at a push)and quickly gets under your skin; even leaving a gorgeous, blink-and-you'll-miss-it piano solo in its' wake. 'Nerve Endings', meanwhile, is the slowburning stand-out. Even allowing for a slightly elliptical lyric (“I'll sharpen my absent eye of a rarity placed in front of me”), it's vivid and compelling and simply smoulders.
'Glass Corners' is the last of the four 'proper' tracks and surely the most strident. There's a cocksure urgency to the funkily insistent guitar and Ross absolutely sings his heart out here. Once again, the song's landscape and tempo shifts with heart-stopping intensity and flings your emotions around. Indeed, it's not always easy to get comfortable while you're negotiating the tight bends and chicanes this EP winds around, but the thrill of the chase is everything and repeated circuits allow just enough familiarity for you to enjoy it to the hilt.
Which is probably a good overview where this intelligent and ambitious EP is concerned. Ross Arundale is clearly a man unperturbed by either hard work or the climb required to attain artistic success along the way. 'Capsize Your Surroundings' may have been a hard-won labour of love, but it's a first born to be rightly proud of. Let's hope it's the first of many where this young man's concerned.
whisperinandhollerin.com - Tim Peacock
If sheer guts and determination were enough to win the day, then it would be hard to resist giving the gold to NIGHT ARTERY main man Ross Arundale. After all, he self-funded, produced and provided the recording space for his debut EP 'Capsize Your Surroundings' on the back of two years back-breaking work wielding a sledgehammer on the Australian railroad. An unforgiving environment, I should imagine, but not enough to deter our hero, who “never considered a back-up plan.” Respect for this alone is surely due, all things considered.
All too often, though, such Herculean effort can fall on stony ground, when a series of reviewers and the public in general then dash such good intentions on the rocks of indifference. And sometimes they'd be right. After all, great art rarely equates with sweat, toil and graft.
Thankfully, however, 'Capsize Your Surroundings' is – creatively at least – not one of those misfires. Arundale himself plays all the instruments. He treats us to four songs and an unlisted piano track at the end which serves as something of a credit-roller. His label's name 'Cinematical' is certainly relevant, for there's certainly an epic, filmic quality keen to burst out of these tracks. In fact, such is the dramatic sweep of Night Artery's music sometimes I wonder if Ross wrote these songs with a short film in mind, even if it's an imaginary one along the lines of Barry Adamson's atmospheric 'Moss Side Story.'
Opener 'An Act Ill-Informed Of Returns' thrusts you headlong into his widescreen pop. As the title suggests, his music is slightly high-brow and quirky, though it's certainly in touch with great pop too. Perhaps inevitably, the countrymen Ross evokes are the likes of Grant McLennan and David McComb, individuals who were rarely found wanting when evocative imagery was concerned. Arundale has a way with an engaging lyric too (sample: “be wary of thieves...they vie to spill your ardor”) and when he allies such observations to these thrilling, string and piano-assisted soundscapes, he's on to something of a winner.
The rest of the EP maintains these exacting standards. Despite a title more akin to a Guided By Voices out-take, 'Cinematical Shards On The Permanent Way' makes an immediate impact. It's nagging, urgent (not a million miles from mid-period Go-Betweens or even The Smiths at a push)and quickly gets under your skin; even leaving a gorgeous, blink-and-you'll-miss-it piano solo in its' wake. 'Nerve Endings', meanwhile, is the slowburning stand-out. Even allowing for a slightly elliptical lyric (“I'll sharpen my absent eye of a rarity placed in front of me”), it's vivid and compelling and simply smoulders.
'Glass Corners' is the last of the four 'proper' tracks and surely the most strident. There's a cocksure urgency to the funkily insistent guitar and Ross absolutely sings his heart out here. Once again, the song's landscape and tempo shifts with heart-stopping intensity and flings your emotions around. Indeed, it's not always easy to get comfortable while you're negotiating the tight bends and chicanes this EP winds around, but the thrill of the chase is everything and repeated circuits allow just enough familiarity for you to enjoy it to the hilt.
Which is probably a good overview where this intelligent and ambitious EP is concerned. Ross Arundale is clearly a man unperturbed by either hard work or the climb required to attain artistic success along the way. 'Capsize Your Surroundings' may have been a hard-won labour of love, but it's a first born to be rightly proud of. Let's hope it's the first of many where this young man's concerned.
Night Artery - Capsize Your Surroundings CD REVIEW
http://wildysworld.blogspot.com/
Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)
Melbourne, Australia's Night Artery is a story of personal perseverance: Personal because Night Artery is one man, Ross Arundale; Perseverance because it took Arundale time and lots of sledgehammer swings to find not only his true voice but also the means to get it out there. Spending two years working on the railway might seem like a romantic, adventurous life, but Arundale can tell you how hard the work is. His reward was enough money put away to buy all of the instruments and equipment he needed to build his own studio. Then he just needed a year to learn to play them all. Capsize Your Surroundings is not only the name of Arundale's first E.P. as Night Artery, but it also describes the way he's lived his life until now. If you don't like your circumstances, change them.
Capsize Your Surroundings opens with An Act Ill-Informed Of Returns, which starts with a gorgeous faux-orchestra moving into a mellow verse followed by an almost frenetic chorus. The song takes on a Progressive Rock bent as Arundale turns the song every which way on the way to the next verse. I really enjoyed this tune and can't seem to get it out of my head. Cinematic Shards On The Permanent Way is a jaunty rock song that again has some Prog leanings. The changes in song structure throughout make for highly interesting listening. Nerve Endings is more of a classic rock radio ballad in acoustic setting. It's extremely well written and performed. Glass Corners opens with riffs reminiscent of old Yes songs and turns into an almost U2-like grand ballad that falls into apoplectic Yes chord progressions at the end. Glass Corners is Arundale's most impassioned vocal performance on the album and is my personal favorite. The unlisted bonus track is a pretty two-and-a-half minute piano piece that deserves to be heard.
Night Artery is an unusual project. Ross Arundale is an extremely talented composer and performer. He's obviously very motivated to bring his music to the world, and its hard to see how he will not be a great success. Capsize Your Surroundings is a daring, brash and wonderfully successful debut. The mix of progressive leanings with almost classical compositional style and old-fashioned singer-songwriter balladeering makes for a wonderful combination. The only complaint along the way is the shortness of the album. We here at Wildy's World will be hoping for more from Night Artery soon.
http://wildysworld.blogspot.com/
Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)
Melbourne, Australia's Night Artery is a story of personal perseverance: Personal because Night Artery is one man, Ross Arundale; Perseverance because it took Arundale time and lots of sledgehammer swings to find not only his true voice but also the means to get it out there. Spending two years working on the railway might seem like a romantic, adventurous life, but Arundale can tell you how hard the work is. His reward was enough money put away to buy all of the instruments and equipment he needed to build his own studio. Then he just needed a year to learn to play them all. Capsize Your Surroundings is not only the name of Arundale's first E.P. as Night Artery, but it also describes the way he's lived his life until now. If you don't like your circumstances, change them.
Capsize Your Surroundings opens with An Act Ill-Informed Of Returns, which starts with a gorgeous faux-orchestra moving into a mellow verse followed by an almost frenetic chorus. The song takes on a Progressive Rock bent as Arundale turns the song every which way on the way to the next verse. I really enjoyed this tune and can't seem to get it out of my head. Cinematic Shards On The Permanent Way is a jaunty rock song that again has some Prog leanings. The changes in song structure throughout make for highly interesting listening. Nerve Endings is more of a classic rock radio ballad in acoustic setting. It's extremely well written and performed. Glass Corners opens with riffs reminiscent of old Yes songs and turns into an almost U2-like grand ballad that falls into apoplectic Yes chord progressions at the end. Glass Corners is Arundale's most impassioned vocal performance on the album and is my personal favorite. The unlisted bonus track is a pretty two-and-a-half minute piano piece that deserves to be heard.
Night Artery is an unusual project. Ross Arundale is an extremely talented composer and performer. He's obviously very motivated to bring his music to the world, and its hard to see how he will not be a great success. Capsize Your Surroundings is a daring, brash and wonderfully successful debut. The mix of progressive leanings with almost classical compositional style and old-fashioned singer-songwriter balladeering makes for a wonderful combination. The only complaint along the way is the shortness of the album. We here at Wildy's World will be hoping for more from Night Artery soon.
Capsize your Surroundings CD REVIEW
www.thedwarf.com.au
The rise to stardom took years of learning and sacrifice, with some gut wrenching decisions to be made, but the outcome is exciting and unpredictable. The Capsize Your Surroundings EP is, in no simpler terms, a jack of all trades release.
Opting for the unconventional road, Ross is Night Artery and a whole lot more. From the photography, to the design, to the keyboard, to the guitar, to the drum kit, and even to the recording gear, every instrument is manned by Ross which gives Night Artery a band like presence when listened to, and you soon forget it's just one man.
From the hypnotic string arrangements in An Act Ill-Informed of Returns, leading into the hybrid pop/rock single discovered and aired by Triple J, Cinematic Shards on the Permanent Way, it is evident that this EP is just as diverse as the live show.
Two years of swinging the sledge hammer for months on end working on the Railway Line has finally paid off for Ross and Night Artery, the result is an intense independently released EP Capsize Your Surroundings that leaves you hanging for more and will no doubt have you swilling beer at his next live show.
www.thedwarf.com.au
The rise to stardom took years of learning and sacrifice, with some gut wrenching decisions to be made, but the outcome is exciting and unpredictable. The Capsize Your Surroundings EP is, in no simpler terms, a jack of all trades release.
Opting for the unconventional road, Ross is Night Artery and a whole lot more. From the photography, to the design, to the keyboard, to the guitar, to the drum kit, and even to the recording gear, every instrument is manned by Ross which gives Night Artery a band like presence when listened to, and you soon forget it's just one man.
From the hypnotic string arrangements in An Act Ill-Informed of Returns, leading into the hybrid pop/rock single discovered and aired by Triple J, Cinematic Shards on the Permanent Way, it is evident that this EP is just as diverse as the live show.
Two years of swinging the sledge hammer for months on end working on the Railway Line has finally paid off for Ross and Night Artery, the result is an intense independently released EP Capsize Your Surroundings that leaves you hanging for more and will no doubt have you swilling beer at his next live show.
Night Artery CD Review
Simon Forman - Ozjam.com.au
It’s incredible to believe such a vast musical soundcape is the
creation of just one person!
Listening to Night Artery delivers the same sense of exhilaration as travelling at 100mph in an open
top car… the rich landscape changing faster than your brain can comprehend.
You want to absorb every detail, but everything’s moving too fast to register in one take. The only solution is to turn around and fly down the highway again…and again.
Simon Forman - Ozjam.com.au
It’s incredible to believe such a vast musical soundcape is the
creation of just one person!
Listening to Night Artery delivers the same sense of exhilaration as travelling at 100mph in an open
top car… the rich landscape changing faster than your brain can comprehend.
You want to absorb every detail, but everything’s moving too fast to register in one take. The only solution is to turn around and fly down the highway again…and again.
Capsize Your Surroundings CD Review
pluginmusic.com
You never know what musical move Night Artery is going to bust out next. It might be some moody piano key-twanging, straightforward pop balladeering, angst-filled rock, or even Renaissance Faire-ish guitar plinking. But the eclectic smattering of influences doesn’t detract from the EP’s musical cohesion. Ambitious but unpretentious, grandiose in its vision yet honest in execution, “Capsize Your Surroundings” should appeal to anyone who appreciates unpredictable music with a foundation of genuine emotion.
pluginmusic.com
You never know what musical move Night Artery is going to bust out next. It might be some moody piano key-twanging, straightforward pop balladeering, angst-filled rock, or even Renaissance Faire-ish guitar plinking. But the eclectic smattering of influences doesn’t detract from the EP’s musical cohesion. Ambitious but unpretentious, grandiose in its vision yet honest in execution, “Capsize Your Surroundings” should appeal to anyone who appreciates unpredictable music with a foundation of genuine emotion.
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