>>EAR0021 - Brian Ellis - Trustworthy
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "This time on unreleased frenzy I decided to review a record released by a friend of mine, I mention this only because I want my bias to be clear up front. Brian and I went to high school together and while he was making everything from intricate Iron Maiden tributes to phony Checloslovakian dance music, I was nerding out in my bedroom to what i thought was really heady electronic music. We were worlds apart but we always got along and had great discussions about music. His musical prowess was never a debate and neither were his live performances ever dull (many involved face make-up/drag/fake blood and sometimes pancakes). Despite the undeniably fun aspect of his music I could never relate to it... it was too jokey for me.

That's why Brian's new EP "Trustworthy" is just that. I can trust that I'm not being made fun of by my friend for liking serious music but rather that he has decided to let part of himself lay bare. His technical abilities have found him in the proper state of mind to make a really beautiful and heartfelt record. Following the recent creation of a full length I asked if I could review this EP because I felt it was a milestone in his progression as an artist.

This record also appeals to me on another level, Brian's covers seem to place him equally influenced by music that many would consider worlds apart. The delicate arrangement of an entirely acoustic cover of Richard D. James Flim is awe-striking, this however is strongly contrasted content-wise by his cover of Simon & Garfunkle's Sound of Silence. Neither seem out of place alongside Brian's Seven Flowers which seems to be an average of the two. Landing somewhere between psychedelia and progressive composition my pal has done a good job... and he knows how critical i can be. Please take a look at http://www.earstroke.com for his and other free mp3 releases."

- Seth, The Trouble With Us

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