2014-03-02
If the lyrics on this album are at all autobiographical, then Ron Pope doesn't have much luck with the ladies as each song on Calling Off The Dogs deals with the loss and lamentation of relationships (or different stages of the same one).
Poppy harmonies on the opening tracks Lick My Wounds and Empty Page transport the listener back to the 80's and trivialize the depth of the album's lyrical content. However Pope - born 1983 and raised in the Atlanta, GA suburb of Marietta - demonstrates more mature songwriting on the orchestral Push Me Away and Back to Bed, a Midwest tale of loss which even an electronic clap track fails to spoil.
Ron Pope manages to at times both delight and depress with this moody collection of songs which will appeal to fans of Jason Mraz and John Wesley.
Stand-out tracks: Push Me Away (6), Back to Bed (9)
GLENN BULTHUIS & THE TONEDEAFS
Greatest Hits, 1977-2007
THE NIKHIL KORULA BAND
Music of the New Day
BUTCH WALKER
Sycamore Meadows
PAPERCUTS
You Can Have What You Want
RAUL MALO
After Hours
THE CLASH
The Clash: Live at Shea Stadium
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