by Gary Glauber
PopMatters Music
Critic
The talented Chris von Sneidern
was one of the first do-it-yourselfers, covering multi-tracks with vocals
and instruments long before it became so easy and fashionable to do so.
Hailing originally from Syracuse, New York, he eventually took his
talents out to the Bay Area, where he played with several power pop bands
years before first taking the solo road with 1993's Sight & Sound.
To this day, many cite his hook- and harmony-filled 1994 release Big
White Lies as the quintessential power pop album. But with ensuing
releases, von Sneidern displayed a growing maturity and variety to his
music.
After a few
experiments setting poetry to music and assembling a live album, CVS returned
to the studio for his first traditional pop release in years. The good
news is that The Wild Horse is worth the wait. Von Sneidern's back
with nuance and subtle shadings that make his new music a pleasure to
behold.
The Wild Horse displays the fruits of a
musical maturity acquired over the years, and is enhanced by two things
that weren't evident earlier in his career: a mastery of the keyboard and
a strong vocal sense of soul beneath the traditional pop exterior. Von
Sneidern's work with soul/R&B side-project band the Sportsmen
obviously has served him well (and two band members lend a hand here,
Khoi-San on piano and Derek Ritchie on drums).
CVS is older and
wiser now, and no less talented. While still covering a host of
instruments on this self-produced collection, he has written songs in a
wider variety of styles and is unafraid of slowing things down to better
express the host of difficult emotions behind any song.
Right from the
start, you'll hear the difference. "Remember" is a deceptively
upbeat ballad about thinking back on a love that decidedly was one-sided.
A great trumpet solo points up what truly is a very full and accomplished
arrangement all around. For contrast's sake, there's a more soulful 6/8
version of this same song that closes this CD.
"Glory Days Are
Gone" hearkens back to earlier CVS music, while lyrically it tends
to get a little self-pitying at times, regretting choices made and citing
observations of others who have chosen other paths in life. Still, the
chorus is infectious and the subtle fills and lush arrangements more than
overcome any lyrical weakness. The harmony-filled middle bridge is all
the evidence you need to hear to know the old CVS still exists within the
more mature singer/songwriter.
"Identity"
is another bittersweet gem of lost opportunity: "I could be a
memory, stuck inside a stubborn past / I could have taken liberty in
making every moment last / Everything is everywhere, take it in but don't
forget / You can fantasize the facts, but what you see is what you
get".
The roots-rockin'
"Ooh Mama Mama" lets CVS stretch in the unlikely direction of
white soul à la Lynyrd Skynrd and others. His target here is a sad modern
woman bored with her existence who chooses to drink to allay her
situation ("only action she gettin' is a 40 oz. beer"). The
song clicks on all cylinders, from the guitars to the backing vocals
(Neko Case and Kelly Hogan) -- skillfully done.
"A Simple
Tune" is just that -- a pleasant instrumental ballad with a trumpet
lead that goes only a minute and a half.
"Neighbor's
Dog" to my ears is Chris von Sneidern writing a John Hiatt song
(from Hiatt's catchy heyday) about stalking. This infectious upbeat
hybrid has that sort of country energy fueling it, from the guitars to
the great shouting harmonies on the chorus. (It currently rivals Bleu's
"Watching You Sleep" as my favorite stalker song.)
CVS continues to
create memorable tunes and choruses that remain with you long after the
music stops. He does so with "The Ballad of Zoe Snow", and
laces it with irony. Here is the lowly observer, fascinated with the
omnipresent beauty of supermodel Zoe Snow while he's got his head in the
oven. Zoe dies in a "superstunt tragedy", but our pedestrian
narrator sings on.
Another highlight
from this wonderful CD is the cover of "Downtown", the one-time
Petula Clark hit. Von Sneidern covers it fairly faithfully, and as such,
points up the lyrical syncopated pleasures of this fine song to a
generation that might not have heard it the first time around.
Segueing from the
commercial strains of "Downtown", von Sneidern takes his piano
directly into the poignant ballad of "Great American Dream".
Here, thoughts of the mysterious nature of love are pondered and
ultimately digested as absurd confession -- he's more than merely
smitten, he's in love ("She said, 'Why, if love is timeless and the
words are true, is desire alive today but still refusing you?'").
The only other
non-CVS song here is "Take Me Back", an organ-tinged taunt to
an ex-lover that turns into a plea to be taken back. Von Sneidern
surrounds himself with a great arrangement (bass and drums and organ),
and vocally, he truly makes the song his own.
The folky and
Dylanesque "Horse House" combines traditional harmonica-backed
western blues with modern lyrics. The casual delivery here makes the
paradox of those often-comical lyrics float by somewhat without question.
"Our Last
Waltz" is another beautiful song, traditional CVS in tone brought to
another level of emphasis with the addition of the piano's sweet grace
notes. "(Watch Them) Ride Away" again uses piano to great
effect, an observational song about one's sacrifices in life for love,
pondering if you'd make those same choices again.
There's plenty of
soulful retro-feel to the variety of songs on The Wild Horse.
While the CVS of years ago was essentially guitar-based pop, the older,
more mature CVS offers richer piano-enhanced arrangements and more
expressive soulful vocals in a wider diversity of offerings. This strong
14-song collection is an aural treat that should please older fans and
manage to wow a few new ones also. The Wild Horse shows that Chris
von Sneidern has only added to his talent with the experience elapsing
years have provided. He is richer for that experience, and with his
songwriting and performing abilities, he enriches us too.
— 5
November 2003
