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Audio CD
Publisher: Self Release
Val Emmich's latest release SUNLIGHT SEARCHPARTY is a loose and fearlessly raw album recorded almost entirely live to tape, complete with mistakes, chatter, party noise, and slightly out-of-tune instruments. The title represents the struggle to find hope, inspiration and happiness that Emmich and his comrades have faced over the last few years. Produced by Jason Cupp (The Elected, Finch), the album features an extensive list of guest musicians playing a wide variety of instruments including trumpets, orchestral strings, harmonica, piano and banjo. The album includes a 16 page booklet featuring handwritten pages straight from Emmich's journals and a DVD featuring the one-hour documentary IT S ONLY YOUR LIFE (produced & directed by Matt Schuman) which reveals the complete arc of the making of the record.
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| Wicked Cool |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This cd made me smitten as a kitten. Val's lyrics are amazing, the content relatable, and the sound stellar.
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| Val Emmich - Sunlight Searchparty |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Love every song on this cd. Val Emmich is truly a talented musician who makes songwriting seem effortless as every song is meaningful and yet catchy, making you want to listen to it again and again.
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| I stumbled in |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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Val Emmich was not within the bounds of my music taste when it first played in my computer. The album was Slow Down Kid. As it started I feared I'd stumbled into one of those hip, trendy, emoish bands. But as I listened to the words, to the man himself, I was drawn in. Slow Down Kid brought me in.
Sunlight Searchparty is even better. It might not be for everyone, but the lyrics are great and frequently clever. Some songs are of that heartbroken variety, but they don't feel trite. Teach Me and The Only One Lonely are both very well done. But my favorite tracks are At the Risk of Sounding, High Noon and New Year's Resolution. This is one of those rare CDs that I search out in my iPod for one track, then just leave it on this album from whatever track I start on.
In an era of playlists, Sunlight Searchparty is an enthralling album.
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| People need a bigger singing range |
| Customer Rating: 2 out of 5 |
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I guess I am just a little tired of people having a 4-note range and then going into falsetto (the guy who sings YOURE BEAUTIFUL, Sarah Maclachlin, etc...). People always use the same 4 or 5 chords and somehow this draws a "ooohh this is soooo pretty" reaction from listeners. Why can't people write good melodies any longer? An example of this is the untalented Natalie Merchant. She couldn't write a melody to save her life! Whatever happened to REALLY good songwriters like Benny Andersson who wrote lush, soaring melody lines. But not only melody lines but also counter-melody lines and sometimes 2 of those. I mean, seriously, I can take the 10 or so male singers nowadays who sound the same and put them all in one pot ..same thing goes for the women singers of the 90s (lilith fait women especially). Perhaps these people should study the compositions of Schumann and Brahms and really learn what a melody SHOULD be like. We seem to have lost the arts of singing and writing good music.
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| What a party |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This ain't your happy birthday party, that's for sure. Once again, Val Emmich cuts right to your heart and brings it to you pretty raw with enough layers of production to make it not so acoustic most of the time. Like all his work, this album tells a story about struggle related to relationships, an artist's struggle with overly greedy and inconsiderate record companies, superficiality, particularly with women who put on make up and pose as models for all of us to see, and a glimmer of hope in Now is No time and First Try. You get a DVD with the CD all for around $10-12 which is pretty nice. Your old new year's resolution should be to get this CD if you don't already own it!
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New Year's Resolution
First Try
This Ship's Going Down
Cover Up
Teach Me
Now Is No Time
High Noon
At The Risk Of Sounding
If They Come Again
Absolutely Still
The Only One Lonely
Decadent Decline
Last Day
I Don't Get The Joke
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