Search - Johnny Irion :: Ex Tempore (Dig)

Ex Tempore (Dig)
Johnny Irion
Ex Tempore (Dig)
Genres: Country, Pop, Rock
 
  •  Track Listings (12) - Disc #1

Some records are made out of obligation; others are motivated by sheer desire. Ex Tempore, the new album from writer/artist Johnny Irion, falls into the latter category. The title was inspired by the rapid pace of its crea...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Johnny Irion
Title: Ex Tempore (Dig)
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Rcam Records
Original Release Date: 1/1/2007
Re-Release Date: 8/7/2007
Genres: Country, Pop, Rock
Styles: Outlaw Country, Country Rock
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 700261214573

Synopsis

Album Description
Some records are made out of obligation; others are motivated by sheer desire. Ex Tempore, the new album from writer/artist Johnny Irion, falls into the latter category. The title was inspired by the rapid pace of its creation, a pace that undoubtedly contributed to the immediacy of this song cycle, a varied yet cohesive collection intermingling piano balladry, Americana, chamber pop and folk-style fingerpicking, with the occasional blast of skronky rock to clear the air. These songs are suffused with artistic aspiration. There's a palpable sense of life being lived--its ups, its downs, its everyday rhythms--in every note and measure of Ex Tempore; you couldn't ask more than that from a record. Digipak.

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CD Reviews

Americana country-folk meets early '70s pop-rock
hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 08/17/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)

"It's difficult not to think of Neil Young when Irion's high and reedy voice makes its entry on the album's first track, an impression furthered by pedal steel, acoustic guitar, piano and a loping waltz rhythm. Still, the breathy harmony vocals and a meandering flute suggest something beyond mere imitation or tribute, and indeed the album plays out a variety of influences. At times you'd swear this was a rootsy country-folk album, at others a sophisticated early-70s pop release, and at a few transcendent moments, both at once. The piano, strings and drums of "Roman Candle" bring to mind Badfinger, early Elton John and the chamber-pop of The Left Banke. Bouncy drums, pedal steel and harmonica back a yearning croon and sympathetic French horn on "Eyes Like a Levee," and the a similarly sweet vocal on "Brush Yr. Teeth Blues #56" provides a tender catalog of a child's moments before sleep. A number of songs feature the sort of plodding piano-and-vocal that John Lennon made so effective at the end of the Beatles and the start of his solo career, though Irion rocks more straightforward with fuzzbox and sax on the glam-blues "Madrid." Beyond the Harvest-inspired Americana and '70s pop confectionary, Irion adds elements of soul, gospel and funk, making this an unusually rich and eclectic CD for country rock and pop fans. [©2007 hyperbolium dot com]"