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Full of twists and turns, "The Great Dissolve" is a musical experience that rolls out like a wonderfully daring indie film. It's easy to picture the atmospheric tracks backing a key turning point, suspenseful climax or devastating conclusion to a plot. Take the track "New Horizon," which starts innocently enough with softly plucked keyboard strokes, but later raises the dramatic stakes with its layers of drums and laser-like effects. The song "When all is Washed Away" evokes a darkly intelligent Alan Ball sensibility where characters from his TV show "Six Feet Under" or film "American Beauty" could be imagined mulling over the directions of their lives. Shaun Drew, the album's composer and producer, has a knack for keeping things interesting on the disc, where all sorts of instruments bounce off each other. "Endless Dream" creeps into focus by way of orchestral string sounds, and is punctuated by a piano, some tribal percussion beats and guitar twangs. There's no confusion here, however. Like the overall feel of the album, the track simply builds up to a powerful cascade of melody. |