Darren Davidson - The Journey

​Darren Davidson

The Journey
self-released; 2016

​3.7 out of 5

By Dan Weston

Darren Davidson is a multi-instrumentalist, music composer and guitar instructor. To me it sounds like he lives, breathes and eats music. There are plenty of us out there myself included and in general the company is good. 

​He recently released The Journey which contains four-songs which add up to a little over ten minutes long. Considering he is holding a guitar in his hands and is a guitar teacher I thought the songs would be more centered around the guitar. Out of the four songs no two are alike and a couple are so drastically different it doesn’t even seem like they should be on the same EP. My thoughts were that after listening to the EP Davidson wants to be a film composer for blockbuster movies. 

He opens with “The Journey.” It’s serene and pretty at first. Light, clean guitars are layered with soft pads. It’s cinematic but not nearly as cinematic as what happens later in the song. Have you seen the movie Avatar? Have you heard the soundtrack. Once the orchestral, tribal drums with the vocal harmonies come that was all I could think of. However there have been some improvements in the mix to really make the song dynamic. 

The next song “Beautiful Flower” is still cinematic but contains a different vibe very much due to the drums which this time around is a traditional rock kit. They felt like vignettes. Like a snippet. The third track “Seasons” is where a complete departure happens. Davidson finally puts his guitar front and center and it’s obvious now why he is a teacher. The guitar has a flamenco feel to it and all things considered is the best mix and most enjoyable track to my ears. 

He closes with “Times of Tranquility” which sounds like the title. It reminded me of something you would hear after a dramatic war movie. A couple of people in the theater are sobbing as the credits begin to roll. 

I’m not completely sure what Davidson’s endgame is here but I’m not sure it even matters as long as you are making music you love. As I mentioned earlier his music is cinematic so if any of you out there reading this make films you may want to get in touch.

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