swan collins - we all get answers to questions we didn't ask

Swan Collins

We All Get Answers To Questions We Didn't Ask
self-released; 2013

3.4 out of 5

By Ted Rogan

The inspiration for Swan Collins’ latest effort We All Get Answers to Questions We Didn’t Ask  is to try to make an album that sounds like musical journal entries. The album tries to capture the fleeting and ever changing moments of his life including the good and the bad. The album is incredibly lo-fi and suffers because of it at times and other times almost benefits from it. For example, the vocals were often buried and muddy but the ukulele had a great sound that benefited from the raw recording. Despite the limited recording platform the songs shine, as they are often sparse and well written. 

The four-track EP starts with “One Second Behind,” which has a somber sounding organ and vocals that I wish were more present in the mix. The part that is frustrating is that you could hear the potential for a good song but it gets bogged down with the poor production in addition to his occasional off-key singing. The high point comes at the end of the song when he harmonizes his vocals with the organ. The second song “So Much for the Better Days” fares much better with a ukulele as the main instrument. The ukulele also left some room for his vocals to be heard and what do you know - the guy has a pretty attractive voice. The song was good even though there weren’t many lyrics and it mostly revolved around him saying “so much for the better days.” On "It Was Once" he once again takes advantage of the ukulele but he decides to add an electronic drum beat this time around. This was an instrumental piece that didn’t live up to its potential. I’m hoping that he further refines this song as I was listening to it in its demo stage. The last song “Winning Days” is a simple song played on acoustic guitar and it dripped with melancholy. This four-song demo had some great ideas that suffered because of the production. That being said you can imagine Collins coming into his own at some point. As he is working on his current full-length I am hoping he is able to improve some of the production so I can hear his ideas come to fruition.

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