Brian Vander Ark
(Second Motion)
The Verve Pipe had the distinct misfortune to emerge upon the musical scene concurrently with a certain British band bearing a similar, foreshortened name, and although the Michigan outfit was unquestionably the bigger hitmaker (in the States, at least) and lasted a good number of years longer than its UK counterpart, the inevitable critical comparisons were brutal, to say the least. Indeed, nowadays the Verve Pipe is dismissed as just another more-or-less-one-hit-alterna-wonder from the ‘90s, a musical lightweight, while The Verve is seen as a genuine heavy-hitter and one of the rare artistic successes that came out the otherwise underwhelming Brit-pop era (an assessment in play, incidentally, long before that band's recent, triumphant, reunion).
Former VP frontman Brian Vander Ark struck out on his own after his group's eventual demise earlier this decade. His first solo effort, 2003's somewhat self-consciously titled Resurrection, was a middling affair with lot of acoustic guitars, pretty piano and Vander Ark's sensitive crooning. 2006 brought the Ken (Wilco) Coomer-produced Angel, Put Your Face On, a slightly more inspired effort that demonstrated growth (at the time Vander Ark cited as inspirations Elton John and Simon & Garfunkel) but sometimes lapsed into Damien Rice/John Mayer/Brett Dennen-styled pabulum. Now comes Brian Vander Ark, which doesn't really serve up any surprises but manages to fill in some of the gauzy edges and paint a portrait of a songwriter in the process of moving past his more obvious influences and carving out a musical identity.
Cut at a few North Carolina studios (including Mitch Easter's Fidelitorium) with classic rock producer Bill Szymczyk at the helm, and, likewise, featuring several classic rock session players (among them, bassist Willie Weeks and drummer Joe Vitale) in the backing band, the album benefits from an intimate - but, thankfully, not one of those clichéd notions of "stripped down" infesting all too many so-called "singer-songwriter" records nowadays - vibe that allows each instrument and Vander Ark's trembly/raspy, Peter Gabriel-esque vocals full expression. On "Little Man," for example, a cautionary (confessional?) about the pitfalls of hubris, shuddery, twanging chords and a nocturnal vibe casts an ominous vibe. That's contrasted by the good-time feel of the upbeat "You'll Be The Death of Me," a gospel-tinged slice of alt-country that wouldn't be out of place in the Ryan Adams songbook. Speaking of which, on "Fit To Be Tied" Vander Ark kicks up a cloud of country dust, pedal steel and electric guitars dogging his heels as he turns in one of his more convincing performances on the album.
Vander Ark hasn't completely found that identity just yet, as evidenced by such tracks as "And Then we Fell" (a meditation on the obsessions and frivolities of Americans that, unfortunately, nicks some key rhythmic and melodic elements of Simon & Garfunkel's own "America"; the singer's more convincing on the less clichéd closing track, "We Were Never the Same," about 9/11) and "Optimism's Glow" (which, with its stately keyboard filigrees and oh-so-tasteful percussion nuances, will make all but the most diehard AOR devotee cringe). But he's getting there.
None of what I said about the Verve Pipe in the first paragraph above should take away from Vander Ark the solo artist, of course. But it is appropriate context. For better or for worse, we judge individuals partly on the basis of their past; criminals are required make amends to society before we give them a shot at a new life, so why shouldn't bands have to atone for their musical misdeeds? In either instance, it's not always easy going, but hey, nobody ever said life was supposed to be a free ride. (Just ask Matchbox 20 drummer Paul Doucette, who recently did his own solo project as the Break and Repair Method. For his old band's crimes against good taste and musical honesty, Doucette should've been put behind bars a long time ago; as a result more than a few journalists reflexively chucked his CD when it arrived in the mail, but lucky for him the record was actually interesting enough to snag him a Get Out Of Jail Free card.) With Brian Vander Ark, however, the singer-songwriter has indeed finally paid his dues sufficiently that we can all take a deep breath and quit worrying about all these silly peripheral matters that, when you get right down to it, probably have nothing to do with the creation of art.
Please, though, Brian: when the inevitable temptation arises in a few years to get the Verve Pipe back together - resist it, or you'll erase all the good will you've so painstakingly built up.
Standout Tracks: "Fit To Be Tied," "Little Man" FRED MILLS
