Straylight Run – Self-Titled (Victory Records 2004)

by Dave Sharp on Jan 18^th, 2010

Reviewer: Meghan Jones

Founded by a former member of Taking Back Sunday, some expected a symbiotic charge on the music scene from Straylight Run. While their debut self-titled album does have its saving moments, as a whole the album does not live up to its potential. The artists certainly have a solid foundation of talent but the end product—like bad sex—seems to be going somewhere great but in the end you just can’t get off. Comparable to the band Sugar Cult or Ok Go—for anyone who had their ear to the proverbial Indie music ground a few years ago—Straylight Run produces an interestingly diverse sound, incorporating keyboard, violin, bass, piano, guitars, drums, and a female vocalist in carefully chosen pieces. While the bass and guitar playing are nothing extraordinary, the drums are unusually catchy, getting rhythms, as apposed to melodies, stuck in your head for days. The male vocals come off strained and while the lyrics are relatively original they fall flat when sang as there is a lack of emotion and true conviction in the singing. The piano playing is simple but somehow effective and would be trance-inducing if it weren’t for the distracting mediocrity of the rest of the tune. It is obvious that the keyboardist listened to a copious amount of early Pink Floyd. Wondering and a touch psychedelic—think Piper at the Gate of Dawn with whiner lyrics. The violinist is a nice touch, especially in “Now It’s Done”. Accompanied by a passionate female vocalist, the song is melodious and haunting. Over all, it is a valiant first effort. Improve the foreplay, romance the audience, and follow fucking through—then we’ll listen…all night long.