| Ohio-born
musician/songwriter Tom Slater has been brought to my attention recently via his recently
released debut solo EP entitled What’s Underneath. The 5-song CD showcases
Slater pretty much on his own, with just his voice and guitar. This type of setting is
what I call a ‘pass or fail’ situation for a songwriter. What I mean by that is
that this type of presentation depends 100% on the strength of the songs contained in the
project. If the songs are great, it can be a wonderfully intimate glimpse into a
performer’s creativity, such as Springsteen’s Nebraska. If the songs
are not up to the task, well, let’s just say the project joins countless other local
CDs in life’s dumpster. Thankfully the Slater CD belongs to the former camp. Slater
is a compelling songwriter and musician who has turned in a quality debut recording that
displays a songwriting voice worth listening to.
The opening cut, "Get It Right The First
Time", is a strong retelling of a familiar sentiment. Another highlight is
"Another Pretty Face", which again echoes a common theme (love song) but
Slater’s handling of the lyric gives what could be a ponderous cliché fest in lesser
hands a new lease on life. My hands-down favorite, however, is the closing cut
"Yearbook", which is about just what it sounds like. It is a reflection on high
school days gone by and poses unanswerable questions about classmates’ lives. Slater
even points to his own less-that-popular status with the lines "Cause that’s
what they used to do/ They used to say ‘It must suck to be you’/ And I’d
never really disagree/ Just look at me there, I was so afraid of being me."
All in all, this is a very good effort from an
artist that I personally would like to hear more from. Slater succeeds in the solo format
in a big way. With a band behind him these songs would be even more powerful. As it is,
this is a very listenable record; the songs are good enough that you kind of forget that
he is playing alone. In my book that is a pretty good trick.
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Tom
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