Halfway Down the Sky
Somewhere between the dying out of grunge and the ascendancy of rock-rap, something happened in guitar-dominated rock music: bands starting paying attention to songwriting as a craft again. The word “craft” usually brings to mind singer-songwriters like Paul Simon, but in this case it means artists like The Beatles and The Who and even American rockers like Todd Rundgren who combined melody, passion and loud guitars. Those elements seemed forgotten in the last decade, but a handful of thoughtful artists have returned to those values, and any such list of should have Splender near the top. The band’s debut album, Halfway Down the Sky, is the kind of bracing record that has all the hallmarks of a guitar rock classic.
From the harmonics that introduce the opening “I Don’t Understand”, it is clear that something different might be afoot, and when a rock-solid riff pounds the song to a split-second stop before releasing into the chorus, things are different. Songwriter Waymon Boone is interested in clarity and precision, and as the remaining 45 minutes rush by, it is easy to be deceived by seemingly simple tracks like “Monotone”, “Space Boy”, “I Think God Can Explain” and “I Apologize”. It is later, though, when you find yourself humming those tunes’ melodies and choruses , that Boone’s skill manifests itself. His writing is so finely honed you don’t notice any effort on the quartet’s part, their chunky rock sound seems effortless because they have ground songs like “Yeah, Whatever” to razor sharp edges.Splender’s “Yeah, Whatever” isn’t some slacker put-down, it’s a painful howl of loss, as in, “we don’t have to stay friends/let’s pretend to be enemies.” They rock, they can write a hook, and they feel it, too. That’s a hard combination to resist, and the aforementioned Rundgren, obviously one of Boone’s models, produced the record and coaxed the band to a lush but still biting sound.
Splender’s outstanding debut occasionally recalls the loud guitar/pretty hooks of Virginia’s Earth To Andy, another band combining melody with classic rock guitars, but when you’re listening to Halfway Down the Sky , Splender is all that really matters, because their take on modern rock is completely, well, splendid.
Music Direct Magazine, 2000
