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Steven Delopoulos, Straightjacket, 2007 (Circle Back Music/Indie)
Steven Delopolous is the former frontman for the band Burlap to Cashmere, a band that made inroads among the CCM crowd. He's now a solo artist signed to the new Nashville-based indie label Circle Back Music, and his debut Circle Back release became available at the end of 2007. Delopoulos is a gifted singer with a voice that recalls the depth of Harry Chapin and the gravity of Cat Stevens. He's also a solid acoustic player who delivers seamless fingerstyle rolls reminiscent of early Paul Simon. Unfortunately, as gifted as he is, Straightjacket is a record filled with rambling religious metaphors that come off sounding like stream-of-consciousness glossolalia rather than well-crafted songs. The result is a record completely devoid of memorable melodies or recognizable choruses. By track three, Delopoulos' barrage of religious images grows old, and you realize that all of the grand abstract phrases throughout the record aren't really connecting to anything practical. It's disappointing, indeed, because we could use a few prophetic voices during these interesting times. But simply adding the sound of monks chanting while spewing lines like "So you dive beneath the tide, and you radio the sky/And you leave your desert land, and your fortune all behind/It's a sequel never told, as you build it, you could tell it/As the waves flush out that note, you build that temple just to sell it/And the moon is sitting speechless, as our castle's slowly burning/Well, I bought a cup of coffee when I asked her for her hand/She was checking me for Egypt, she was shaking me for sand/But I, I've been resurrected years ago," makes little impact. Virtually the entire record is filled with this kind of loquaciousness sans melody. There are, however, two tracks on the record that are representative of Delopoulos' full potential. Track six, "Fire Away," is a song of few words and soft guitar that showcases his tremendous voice. "Fire Away" is a soulful number that, although also filled with abstract metaphors, makes a connection because the abstract lyrics are infused with soulful melodies that are easy on the ears. Delopoulos delivers this same soulful brilliance on "Open Your Eyes," an ambient piano-backed song that again highlights his impressive vocal abilities. These two songs alone almost make the record worth purchasing. But the beautiful vibe of "Open Your Eyes" is quickly trampled by the frenzied apocalyptic track "Halt," which is just plain creepy and sounds like it belongs somewhere in the middle of the Les Miserables soundtrack. Delopoulos is performing a CD release concert in Nashville on January 17 at Eastwood Christian Church. He's a solid live act, but the material this time-around is not representative of his full potential. — Vincent Wynne, January 12, 2008
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