OFFICIAL: http://elliotschneidermusic.com/
Written
by Larry Robertson, posted by blog admin
Elliot
Schneider’s eleven song studio release Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One
Basketcase comes appended with some bonus material, namely demos, rehearsals,
and live performances from across his long life in music, and the combination
of these seemingly disparate sources makes for an even meatier release. This is
his fourth solo release since returning to the fray of a focused music career;
Schneider, after his pursuing his dreams as a young man, chose to walk away
during the Eighties and, instead, pursued a career as an educator. Only when he
retired as a teacher did Schneider return to writing and recording music in
full and the results attest to a talent that never laid dormant during those
“lost years” but, instead, deepened and widened in all the right ways. There’s
a nice musical mix here as well – some of the tunes are definitely throwbacks,
but Schneider shows a willingness and ability to sound completely modern as
well.
There’s
nothing about this album to suggest that Elliot Schneider isn’t a spirit in
full flight and writing at an inspired level few songwriters reach. “The Moon
Has Flown Away” relies on some elegant imagery and a warm, inviting vocal tone
from Schneider. He sounds like an eminently likeable performer and, if the
listener is a newcomer to Schneider’s talents, there’s scarcely a better way to
introduce him. The guitar sound, album wide, is a stre”Diehardngth and that’s
no exception here. “Diehard Killjoy” lives and dies with the guitar,
particularly the rave-ups punctuating the track, and has a hard-nosed charging
quality that will work for many listeners. The weave of guitar notes propelling
“Captain Argent” forward has a delicate, melodic touch dancing fleet-footed
over a lean drumming attack. It’s has the air of an acoustic track given some
light electrification, but there’s just the right amount of rock muscle thanks
to the rhythm section. There are few songs on the album close to being any kind
of ballad, but “In a Sense Innocence” comes close and has the same
aforementioned folky elements, but they are accentuated much more strongly here
than they are on “Captain Argent”. The harmony vocals employed on this track
sweeten it more and further develop its melodic excellence.
“Overruling
Neo-Fascists” is a heavily stylized piece, but it beats with a real heart and
never feels overly plotted out. It’s a curious marriage of music and lyric, but
convincing and amounts to a sort of stylistic hybrid and chimes in with some social
commentary without any real finger pointing to speak of. “Surreal Survivor” has
a raucous edge and real swing that gritty guitar work latches deep into, but
Schneider feels like he’s straining to match the rough and ready texture with
his vocal. It isn’t a grievous flaw, but it feels like it hampers the song’s
potential a little. The album’s six bonus tracks are a mix of previously
unreleased recordings from live performances and rehearsals alike and are
likely included to lend some sort of over-arching view of Schneider’s life
writing and performing music. They are an effective addition, but the real meat
of the album lies in the first eleven songs and Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One
Basketcase deserves mention as one of 2017’s most worthwhile albums.
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