Private Dancer - Trouble Eyes

Private Dancer - Trouble Eyes

This is not a music blog. This blogger, however, is a DJ and therefore listens to music. This is a review of a record by a band called "Private Dancer".

There are a few ways that records are reviewed, and these methods I feel can be summed up in questions: How do I feel about this record? What does this record mean/Why is this record important? What does this record sound like?/How original is this record? Do I reccomend this record?

This is, of course, a ridiculous way to approach a "review", but here's the plan: I'm going to answer the aforementioned questions.

How do I feel about his record?

I feel pretty good. Listening to it, I'm interested. The sound is fairly dense, and I suspect my mother would not like it. She doesn't like music with "muddled" sounds. However, there are some cleverly hidden hooks within the "sonic collage". I love clichés.

What does this record mean/Why is this record important?

Short answer: Who knows.
Long answer: This is rock music, no doubt. Rock music is not necessarily meaningful, but sometimes it is. This is the beauty of the genre. Like literature, it can be entertaining, it can be thought provoking, and it can be both. I have done absolutely no research on this band, so I don't know who they are or where they're from. If I had to guess, I'd say they're late-twenties white men, with beards and book collections. Probably more than two college degrees between them, and definitely some wit. So what does this record mean? Who knows. But I like it, it makes me feel cool.

What does this record sound like/How original is this record?

The first song and many others on the record sound like proto-metal, very much like Detroit's Awesome Color. That shouldn't mean anything to most people, so imagine MC5-style rock played by a bunch of white college graduates, only less militant. The musicianship is good, however, not sloppy, and not everything on the record sounds like raw meat. Track number second, "1000 year wave" is a slower cut, still with a little fuzz but also a clear, melodic and very pleasing lead guitar. It's somewhere between instrumental rock (like Unwed Sailor) and I-don't-know-what. I like this track very much, though. The rest of the record is not uniform, dancing between hooks and noise and clever lyrics. The last track, "Do You Like To Read?" strongly evokes The Hold Steady with its lyrical delivery, and the words suggest to me that Private Dancer does, indeed, like to read. Original? Not particularly. Private Dancer, like The Hold Steady, plays sometimes abrasive rock music that seems to draw on seventies arena rock. But unlike The Hold Steady, they are also capable of toning things down. This record is a new take on a well established genre (noisy rock), but the hooks are pleasing and the lyrics are interesting enough to warrant a close look.

Do I recommend this record?

Yes. If you like rock music, you might like this band. I do.