Three ways to read my review of this great album, published in the April 2014 issue of Illinois Entertainer: 1) take a look at the text below. 2) Click on the link to see a PDF file of the issue and navigate to page 14. 3) Try to read the screen shot below.
Whatever you do, check out Phil's music on bandcamp (link below) and BUY IT! It's also available on iTunes.
March 2014 marks the second-year anniversary of
singer-songwriter Phil Ajjarapu’s near-death motorcycle accident, which served
as a wake-up call for the gifted musician to record his first solo album, the
11-track marvel *Sing Along Until You Feel Better*. Before the accident, the
Libertyville native played bass in multiple Chicago bands (most notably Liquid
Soul) before relocating to Austin, Texas, to teach high school music and gig in
bands there. The album that resulted is a hall-of-famer as far as silver
linings go: financed by Kickstarter and produced by Ken Stringfellow (R.E.M. and
the Posies) the songs sound like they are from the late 1960s—not for nostalgic
reasons, but for top-shelf rock songwriting reasons. Nearly 30 Austin musicians
helped Phil (who plays guitar, including pedal steel, piano and sings) record
his compositions of love, love lost and the self-examination that results. The
title track is an upbeat song that belies its melancholy mood; “Don't Worry” is a
hopeful song about “leaving Ohio and moving back to Chicago” to chase a girl;
“Every Day” is a heart-breaker about the urge to call an old love, and perhaps
the most surprising—and cynical track—is “Nothing Is Connected,” a rollicking
acoustic-guitar number. (Philajjarapu.bandcamp.com)
-Jason Scales
Link to Illinois Entertainer website/PDF file: http://www.joomag.com/magazine/illinois-entertainer-april-2014/0480185001396303656
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| P. 14, April 2014 IE, ignore the odd placement of the photo--that's NOT Phil :) |
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