Chris von Sneidern's 2nd CD for Heyday
Records is an innovative gem -- both musically and technically. "Big
White Lies" is filled with some of the catchiest pop-rock songs your
likely to hear this year. The album is also the first to include
"Multimedia Liner Notes" utilizing a new mixed-mode mastering
technique which allows a CD-ROM track to piggyback onto a standard audio CD.
While the music
alone is well worth the price of admission, Big White Lies is the first album
to include a free CD-ROM Multimedia Liner Notes (MLN) track. While
standard CD players will play the disc in the usual way, those who put the CD
in their computer's CD-ROM drive will discover unreleased Chris von Sneidern
bonus tracks, videos, interviews, lyrics and other digital surprises. The bonus
MLN track resulted from Heyday president Ron Gompertz' belief that
"multimedia can be the contemporary counterpart to the nearly extinct
vinyl LP album cover." Big White Lies represents a milestone usage of the
still-emerging CD-ROM technology.
With Big White
Lies, San Francisco based popmeister Chris von Sneidern has presented the world
with an arresting album of classic timeless pop, a stunning follow up to the
critically acclaimed 'Sight & Sound' that was
released on Heyday last year.
While an increasing
number of Bay Area bands riding high on the fashionable pop-punk wave (Green
Day, The Meices et al), it is refreshing to visit the world of CVS, where the
best of sixties, seventies and eighties pop perfectly intertwine to bring a uniquely
jangly nineties sound. With drop dead melodies, crisp guitars and humongous
hooks, this album transcends common cubby-hole labels. CVS is the real thing.
With the melodic
sensibility of Ray Davies and the lyrical smartness of Elvis Costello, CVS
captures a sound that is rare in today's world of so-called alternative music.
Inside the world of CVS you can escape the mindless drone and re-discover the
joys of pure pop. This is where the sound of nineties pop is heading, back to
the simple wonder of two guitars, bass and drums. And a helluva lot of vocal
harmonies. Pop at its best.
Opening with the
soaring chorus of 'Mindreader' to the stellar version of 'Everything I Own',
the Bread classic from the 1970s that closes the album, this record runs
the gamut. From rockin' numbers like 'Hard Again' to the subtlety of 'Here I
Go', CVS is presented here in all of his guises.
Already a respected
songwriter and musician, with fans ranging from American Music Club to
industry figures like Jake Riveria, CVS has been building a solid
following both here and abroad. The album is to be simultaneously released in
both England and Japan.
A US tour is being scheduled to coincide with release of Big White Lies.