Dixon Rose "Trilogy"

Most of you will remember Dixon Rose from a few months ago with his album titled "To The Moon and Back.".It was an outstanding record that took us from heartfelt ballad to upbeat headbanging. Mr. Rose is nothing if not consistent with his output - he's released a new album titled "Trilogy," an ambitious 19 track work that will make you believe that albums are still worthwhile. 

From the getgo, Dixon Rose meets us with the nostalgic ballad "The Day You Saved Me" an exquisitely crafted song with some of the best backup vocal parts I've heard in a long time. Sonically, it's a real treat of a track with synth strings and moody guitars all at a slow hypnotic pace.

For energy, we could listen to "Rise and Grind" which gives us a scratch to that screaming itch maybe you've developed. Just after you've enjoyed the aggression, we start to hear a rap verse come in, and I was listening and thinking "you know what, this really works," and to me, it's just proof that genre ought not to be a prison. There is a similar attitude to the fourth track "What Hurts The Most," at least instrumentally - this cover from Rascal Flatts rocks a lot more than the original. 

Track three is "Irreplaceable" - a very pop-sensitive song that offers a nice detour from the other music we've been hearing. It's upbeat and fun but rather optimistic at the same time. Something about this kind of reminds me of the Japanese rock band "Mr. Children," but maybe that's just the nostalgia kicking in. 

Next up, "That 50's Life" is truly a standout song in the album with its "Magic Changes" chord progression. I know it's a sonic throwback to early rock n' roll but there is quite a country charm going on here - of course, it might be because rock and country share so many roots, but from my standpoint, Dixon's given us something special here. 

In a perfect world I would give you the lowdown on every song in "Trilogy," but at 19 songs deep that makes you read this late into the night... Normally I would stick to the highlights but the truth is that this album is so varied from song to song that really the whole listening experience is such a journey. One such case in point is track 6 with a guest female vocalist on "Wherever You Go" and the song's very contemporary attitude. 

With the following tracks "Human," Gave it Away," and "Beside You" we return to male-fronted rock anthems with all the songcraft of the rest of "Trilogy," that being beautiful harmonies, terraced guitar energy, lovely chord progressions, and heartfelt lyrics. 

Another cover, track 10, features the song "This is Me" from "The Greatest Showman" soundtrack. Here, Dixon Rose takes a very orchestral approach to the guitar replacing the original instrumentation with shimmering distortion and a very daring attitude as the song takes on dramatic new meaning being sung by a male vocalist. 

There are more standout tracks on the album including "This City," "Bleeding Colors" and "Without Me." But I couldn't wrap up this review without mentioning how "Trilogy" ends in largely instrumental electronic pieces which contrast dramatically from the rest of the album. "Dance," "Dance Sequel," and "Dirty Synth" are all lovely electronic pieces, but were not for the variety present in the rest of the album would probably sound rather out of place, but because the diversity had been corroborated so well earlier on, our ears have been tempered a little for this much of a departure. 

Like I said in the intro, "Trilogy" is ambitious at its heart, and it pulls off a dynamic listening experience led by an obviously passionate and creative individual - It's obvious that Dixon Rose pays a lot of attention to detail and that his tastes are just as widespread as his albums, which we can hope for more of in the future.