CD REVIEW

LENNY

“We Are Criminals”

Since last year, I’ve been hearing about this band, Lenny. I always thought it was a strange name for a group but couldn’t deny that they’ve certainly attracted a lot of attention to themselves. After hearing so much about this group, I was interested to see what kind of product they were putting out. Upon first listen of their CD “We Are Criminals”, I’d have to say that this band would fall into the “emo” category that so many bands do. But, I’ve given this CD a number of spins and found a few things that separate Lenny from many in the pack.

The song ‘Take it on the Chin’ strips everything down to just singer J.D. Dickerson and an acoustic guitar. The vocals are decidedly falsetto but don’t veer into the desperate sound of some of his peers. The lyrics are thought-provoking and there is a nice pop sheen to the sound of the music. The beautifully layered guitar parts on ‘Rapture’ combine well with a catchy vocal melody and some angelic backing vocals providing the song with a commercial vibe and, yet, an original sensibility. I could definitely see this song on the active rock charts.

Opening track ‘Run in a Circle’ didn’t do much for me but it does include an absolutely fantastic guitar solo, something that I was convinced had died and gone to the 80’s. Another cool arena rock aesthetic that is included on “We Are Criminals” is gang vocals. These vocals show up on ‘Hope’, an up-tempo number that has a Blink 182 vibe with some powerful drumming. The gang vocals also show up on ‘After the Rain’, a toe-tapping song that has jangly guitars and a very tight rhythm section.

The centerpiece of this recording, in my opinion, is the track entitled ‘Criminals’; a song that includes, seemingly, everything but the kitchen sink. With a haunting acoustic intro, ‘Criminals’ sounds like a story of thankfulness to someone that is very close to Dickerson. The song takes on a grand and spacious sound midway through with all of the instruments joining in a pulsating ascent of chords before bouncing back to the original acoustic riff. Out of nowhere, Dickerson begins a quick chorus of ‘Amazing Grace’ over the acoustic riff. It’s a strange move but one that really gives the song an epic feel.

Bonus track ‘Via Satellite’ reminds me a bit of Fall Out Boy but has some edgier stuff like Dickerson unleashing some big screams in contrast to his heart-on-sleeve vocals. The song that I think would stand out the most live is ‘Everything’s Changing’; a track featuring soaring vocals and cannon-blast drums on the chorus. This track is, in my opinion, the best produced on the album. The studio work that #61 and Dickerson did on this album should be noted and appreciated.

Now that I’ve been introduced to Lenny on CD, I look forward to hearing these tracks done live. As usual, you can expect a full review when I do. Thanks to Amy Humbert and the team at Pavilion Entertainment for the CD and press materials. For more information on Lenny visit them at:

www.lennymusic.com

www.myspace.com/lenny

www.themomentumlabel.com

Well, that’ll do it for this time.

Until Next Time, I’m out like hockey in Nashville.

Chris “Uncle Daddy” Czynszak

To reach Chris Czynszak e-mail at cczynszak@nashvillerock.net