I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect of Simone Felice. Initially curious of the folky, country genre as a whole, I listened to his album ‘Strangers’ and was pleasantly surprised.

This is in no way my usual style or taste regarding music, and I never expected to be able to make ties with the oldie rock I tend to enjoy and know, but there is something profoundly soothing and addictive about Felice’s work like an aural methadone comprised of poetic lyrics and soft, memorable tunes.

It becomes quite apparent where the country/ roots-rock origins stem from by about the second song in; Comparable at points to derivatives of the roots genre such as psychedelic rock (i.e. Pink Floyd in the early 1980s in ‘The Best That Money Can Buy’) and the folk/country/soft-rock aspect, which is characteristic of the works of the Eagles, Felice cherry-picks only the best characteristics of the linked genres and adds his own twang of intelligent storytelling and rhetoric to create a unique and effective balance between poetry and music.

‘Molly O’ offers a representative insight into the album as a whole, delivering strong vocals like something out of 1989, with hyperbolic metaphors and an excess of repetition to mark the piece and artist as different from the rest. The repetition is frequent, but not boring, making it something that’s probably quite good to sing paralytic in the same way that Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ has similarly created that effect.

Tracks two and three have a more modern angle, ‘If You Go to LA’  sounding like something Stereophonics might sing with the characteristic slow pace and huskier voice. Instrumentally, that Eagles-y essence makes the song feel a bit ‘Chevy Impala in the Desert’. For that matter, listening to the likes of ‘Heartland’ and, indeed, ‘Molly O’, it seems that certain songs have a driving-anthem quality to them – that most would be best played behind the wheel of a car in self-imposed isolation, which gives the album a sort of imagery-inspired emotional theme to it.

‘Running Through My Head’ sets the pace for the majority of the album. With an initial hint of REM, gradual, head-bob provoking instrumentals give the piece pace, whilst suggesting it to perhaps suit the role of a successful charity advert for Red Nose Day or the like.

As the album progresses, Felice keeps this principle of blending modern musical evolution with older proven classics, creating a sound that actually works as an identifiable, sound work of art, as opposed to the myriad alternatives these days which can only be deemed as art on account of the experimentation used and strange urge to remove your left ear afterward.

The only real criticism I can muster is the fact that the tracks are, like the lyrics, somewhat repetitive— which is good, as it defines the artist’s own personal style, but there’s nothing particularly shocking – no hidden unexpected grungy elements or subliminal hard-rock semantics (probably for the best). It may tie in well with the genre it conforms to, but almost feel like quite a rigid compliance at times. ’Strangers’ may well be vaguely comparable to the likes of the Eagles, Pink Floyd at times (very occasionally) and even Led Zeppelin if you study the lyrics, but whilst albums such as Hotel California, Animals and Led Zeppelin IV are all themed and reflective of their respective artists, Felice has created an album of validated, somewhat less experimental sounds – which is fine, because this isn’t the 1970s.

The album is summarised and wrapped up in ‘The Gallows’ , which incorporates all aspects of the songwriter’s genius, showing the 21st century not to be an empty, semantically-challenged absence of witty, philosophical art like typical pop music would suggest it to be.

The album as a whole feels a little deflating, not in a miserable sense, but in the way that a sigh allows for a refreshing breath of oxygen to cleanse your thoughts. A truly successful work of art, ‘Strangers’ is the calming breath of fresh air that the current generation was in need of.

4/5

James Reynolds

@ReynoldsAuthor