Absolutely beautiful music! This is what Ryan does best!
Greg | Houston, TX | 11/26/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'm proud to be the first reviewer on here to say that I was aware of Ryan's career long before his time on the show "Rockstar Supernova." I first discovered Ryan Star's music over 3 years ago in the form of the band Stage, who opened up for Eve 6 at a small concert club. I thought that Stage stole the show, and I bought a copy of their self-titled album there at the concert and have since fallen in love with it. I would highly recommend it to any of you, it's a beautiful rock album with powerful guitars and lush piano melodies, and of course Ryan's awesome voice. Anyway, the band was together for 10 years, but broke up shortly after being signed to Maverick records and putting out only one album. So this brings us to Ryan's first solo effort...
I was actually excited to learn that this entire album consists of just Ryan singing and playing piano, with the occasional drums and acoustic guitar. I thought that the best parts of Stage's album was when it was just Ryan and a piano, even though I love hard rock music. This entire album is beautiful, moving, and often melancholy. It begins with the subtle We Might Fall which pretty much sets the tone for the rest of the CD. The next song, So Ordinary, is much more uplifting, and it's probably the most popular song on here. My favorite track is Losing Your Memory, it's probably one of the most moving songs I've ever heard. Other stand out songs are Back Of Your Car, Sink Or Swim, and O...all of which had originally been written to be on Stage's second album that was never completed. There's also a re-worked version of Perfect (which appeared as a guitar-driven track on Stage's album) and The One You Know. Famous Love and The First Time are also very beautiful! It's important to realize that this is NOT a rock album. The whole point of this CD was for Ryan to drop the rock band, and get back to the organic sound that these songs had when he first wrote them. Ryan himself best described this CD as a musician playing alone in his living room, but who is performing for the whole world to hear.
Full track listing:
01) We Might Fall
02) So Ordinary
03) Famous Love
04) Losing Your Memory
05) Psycho Suicidal Girls
06) O
07) Back Of Your Car
08) Saw You In Heaven
09) The Same When I'm Alone
10) Dance With You
11) Sink Or Swim
12) Perfect
13) Famous Yet
14) The First Time
15) Waiting For Love
16) Here Son
17) Take A Ride With Me
18) The Fairy Tale
19) The One You Know
20) Lullaby Suicide"
Music that cuts through your soul
Seidj | Manila, Philippines | 10/07/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I just got this CD last week and I can't get enough of it! I first heard Ryan on Rockstar Supernova when he sang "Losing My Religion", and that performance gave me chills! It was amazing!
All the songs on this CD are beautifully written. Each song has its own character. Ryan's voice is full of emotion and when you listen to this CD you feel like you're just sitting next to him listening. I love all the songs on this album. But if I were to choose my favorites they would be: "We Might Fall", "Famous Love", "O", "Back of you Car" and "Perfect"
I think everybody should have this CD in their collection this is definitely worth your money...even more."
Nice, Melodic Album
C. Baker | Washington, DC | 01/20/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I didn't think Ryan Star was a good fit for Rock Star Supernova based on his performances on the show, but I was curious enough to purchase his album. The album is slow and melodic, with the piano being the main instrument on most songs - so don't expect a pop album or a rock album if you purchase this. That said, I was actually quite pleasantly surprised by the quality of the song writing and found that I enjoyed the album quite a bit. Star has a good voice and the lyrics are clever. In some ways it's probably an album you have to be in the mood for to enjoy, but I give it a definite thumbs up."