GRANIAN
On My Own Two Feet (self-released)
Reviewed by Shaun Dale

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Granian (AKA Garen Gueyikian), who last appeared solo on his Live Sessions disc, is a band again for On My Own Two Feet. While I enjoyed his solo work, the songs on this disc seem to benefit from the supporting cast. Maybe it's just that the arrangements and production are so tight that each track sounds like the definitive version of its respective song.

The songs themselves, a collection of ballads, including rock ballads that really do rock and really are ballads, deserve venues as vast as those arrangements are tight. It's arena rock in the best sense of the term, big sounds painted in wide stripes. One notable feature of the production is keeping Gueyikian miked so that his typically strong lyrics stay on top no matter how hot (very, sometimes) the band gets. That's important because, as always, the songs are the most important feature of a Granian album. Happily, Geuyikian & co. give the songs the performances they deserve, and producer Mike Shimshack preserves those performances brilliantly.

Track List:

On My Own * Mark My Words * Uncovered * Sex In A Box (Rewind) * Vigil * Contagious * If It's What You Want * Ain't That A Shame * Collide * My Voice

© 2005 - Shaun Dale