SKYWARD

I've always appreciated gifts and like my mother always told me, "It's the thought that counts." Indeed, mother, I learned and I appreciated the thought. Many thanks to the friend who sent this disc to me.

Unfortunately, aside from a short violin solo by Matthew Parmenter that could have elevated this gift to two stars, I just can't get myself to rate it that high. Some albums would be better off as instrumental showcases, this is one. The singing is so cringe-wrothy as to make it completely unlistenable. Simon Cowell would have tossed the singer on his ear during the first audition. Maybe Mr Styes should have paid Matthew Parmenter to lend his voice to the production. I've tried to make my way through it numerous times, but my finger stabs at the eject button quicker than a liberal going for his wallet at a Clinton fundraiser.

The musician, Bradley Styes, is extremely talented on various keyboard instruments, bass, guitar and drums. The bass, nice Ric tone, cuts through the mix. Acoustic guitars ring sweetly on many tracks, a highlight I guess. The drumming is competent. Guitar leads have a metal edge but don't have any depth or creative impact. Mr. Styes is very talented, however, the music comes off as very derivative, sometimes campy in the use of the therimin. Directionless. The production is poor, at best, very muddy. Tweaking the EQ did little to improve the experience.

The lyrics are horrid. Check this out, "Can't sleep at night, Can't urinate right." Guffaw! Can you believe that line? There is plenty more like that as well. "I pray for my health in one hand and [&*!#] in the other." Egad. There are Jeffrey Dahmer inspired lyrics, a diatribe against media over-exposure. Silly robots and space explorer poems.

Maybe the next project will be better, he has loads of talent. A good producer could make this into something of a higher quality. Oh, yeah, hire a good vocalist or stick to instrumentals.

Spend your money elsewhere, but always be thankful for unexpected gifts.