Although the city and color that he embodies aren't the two that compose his name, Canadian Renaissance man Dallas Green has returned with an all-new landscape.
For the bearded Ontarian whose solo project City and Colour is already a massive hit up north, it hasn't been until this year that Green finally received some recognition in the States with his fourth album release, Bring Me Your Love.
Known in America primarily as the guitarist of Alexisonfire, Green's departure from hard guitar riffs to slower, melodic strums brings listeners into one of the most personal, atmospheric albums released this year.
Opening the album with "Forgive Me," City and Colour's slow beginning takes listeners on a journey through one man's painful decision to break someone's heart.
Green's somber voice moves listeners while singing, "See I've been known to fall in love/But sometimes love just is not enough/and my heart will stray/Before too long/So please forgive me when I sing this song."
Tracks like "The Sleeping Sickness" are haunting to hear with Green's blunt lyrics bringing listeners right into the mind of someone breaking down; featuring guest vocals from Gordon Downie of The Tragically Hip, City and Colour add a heart-pounding drumbeat into the mix making the track all the more powerful.
Simplicity is key for Green though; throughout the record listeners are not going to find any digital sound effects added into his music. He relies on his smooth guitar playing, and his amazing voice.
"Confessions" extenuates the relationship between Green's stripped down guitar playing and strong singing voice, proving to be a perfect marriage for the strong emotions the track invokes upon the listeners.
"This is passion, it's not love/Infatuation never ends up right/At least I won't be alone tonight/'Cuz I don't want to be alone tonight."
Many of the tracks seem to follow the same lyrical background of someone in a constant struggle with their inner demons, but tracks like "Against the Grain," and "Constant Knot" bring a message of hope rarely heard on this record.
Two of the strongest tracks on the record are the most personal, including the lead single "Waiting," which Green recently performed to perfection on CTV's Morning Show, and "The Death of Me."
"The Death of Me" follows the protagonist's battle with alcohol and with its faster guitar strums and gang background vocals it proves to be the best song on the album. If any of the lyrics on this album reverberate in your head for days, it's easily from this track.
"Maybe drinking wine will validate my sorrow/Every man needs a muse and mine could be the bottle."
The only flaw that halts this album from being perfect is that, as the CD plays along, Green's acoustic sound blends together into one never ending track. Despite its slight flaw, and the album's depressing subject matter, City and Colour has released a beautiful acoustic masterpiece that may soon be considered a classic.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
