Kilowatthours - Strain of Positive Thinking
(Temporary Residence)
Strain of Positive Thinking is not really a bad record. However,
it seems to emulate the physical qualities of certain quasi-emotive styles of
music, while the musicians involved have not understood what intangible
qualities are necessary to truly invoke real emotions. They have the form
but not the substance thereof.
The album begins in a bold fashion, with melodramatic piano and lush
synthesizers laying the groundwork for an orchestrated feel, which is
achieved though the band is actually just your basic four guys, some of
whom have guitars. It's not that the songs are overblown or complex, but
they are executed in broad gestures which emphasize the emotional
cues. The first track "That You All Played" is centering around a
sweeping melody, like the romantic climax of a Hollywood film. Big music
played by musicians with big hearts. "Kayla" features a good,
old-fashioned, big, bold 70s FM radio rock-band climax. In fact, many
times during the album, one is reminded of external music like this, and
generally not good music. Whenever I have listened to the track "Another
Great Reason," I try to remember where I have heard the central piano
progression before, with the sneaking suspicion that it wasn't somewhere
good.
The problem is that the big romantic climax of a Hollywood film is not
authentic but is manufactured emotionality. Thus, to invoke that which
is a saccharine form to begin with is to further remove oneself from the
realm of true, heartfelt passion. The thing is this: musicians that
compose big Hollywood movie scores and wrote 70s FM radio rock hits
generally have a gift for writing accessible music. Kilowatthours are no
different, they are good songwriters. They just need to write their own
songs.
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