First impressions can be misleading. Looking at the cover of this album by Kevin Kelly gave that familiar feeling of dread - yet another shandy drinking singer songwriter writing angst ridden songs of personal woe. However, what we actually get here is something entirely different - an album with true mass market appeal.
As is often the case with all the biggest albums, Kevin Kelly does go over the top sometimes. Well, actually he goes over the top quite a lot. Not that it is a bad thing of course. The world needs a bit of drama and Kevin Kelly is nothing if not dramatic. As an example, "Car World" blasts its way out of the speakers in a way that makes Meatloaf look positively laidback. On "These Days" our Mr Kelly even manages to sound like a rather camp Bruce Springsteen. However, even when you think he can't go any further and he will surely fall deep into the valley of the mundane, Kevin Kelly just kick starts another song and does it again. Even songs with serious subject matter like "War on the Poor" are handled with such dramatic intensity that you can't fail to be impressed. Its not that his lyrics are particularly poetic for they are not, but they are in a language that many will understand and relate to. That's an important point actually. Just think how many copies were sold of Springsteen's "Born in the USA" album.
This was an album that brought a smile to my face for another rather ironic reason. It occurred to me that our Mr Kelly is also an actor and here he is showing up the independent musicians of the world. Not the quirky oddball ones who follow their own trail but the ones wanting to travel on the highway to mainstream success. Now I don't know if this will actually sell one copy or sell a million but I do know which of those outcomes "Lost in the Cracks of the Modern World" deserves and it is most certainly the latter.
This album could easily be turned into a Broadway musical too. Just a thought…
Available on iTunes.