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Owen Temple: Right Here and Now |
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Track List 1. Accidentally Break My
Heart |
(El Paisano) Kerriville raised, 25 year
old, Owen Temple returns with his third album, Right Here And Now,
after a three year wait. His first two releases, General
Store and Passing Through were released while he was
attending the University of Texas in Austin. On this first release
since his college days, Owen's made a few changes with Right Here
And Now. While his first two albums were produced by Lloyd Maines,
for his new release, he changed producers and went with Phil Madiera
this time out. He also hired a NY based publicist, independent
promoters and marketing consultants to help him bring Right Here
And Now to a larger audience. The results of those moves prove
little mixed.
Although there is far more to his
songwriting than the "party life," and it tends to be more cerebral,
and his subject matter much broader, Owen's previous releases aligned
him more in the Robert Earl Keen/Cory Morrow/Pat Green camp of Texas
music. Right Here And Now, seems to be Owen's bid for
mainstream radio play. Where his Maines produced efforts were edgy,
and the production clean and simple, this Madeira produced effort is
much more polished, and at times the production is a
bit busy, which detracts from both the artist and the songs. There are
a few spots that brought to mind the words to his poignant "Tennesee
Highway," off his General Store album.
The first noticable difference is that in
a Maines produced effort, though drums are present, they're hardly
noticeable. What jumps out is first is the artist, then the song, then
guitars, fiddles and steel. The bass and drums are there for rhythm
support, but the listener never even notices them. From the minute I
first put Right Here in the player, I have to admit the first
thing I noticed was the drums, not the singer, the song, or the fiddle
and steel. There are a few songs where the drums, guitars, and overall
production are so overpowering, that Owen seems to be fighting to be
heard above them, and the subtlety and wit of his songs get lost in
the mix. The plugged in, electric sound given to "This Ain't Las
Vegas" just doesn't work. Owen starts out holding his own on this
country/blues number. Vocally he handles the bluesier material very
well, but the instrumentals are brought so far to the front that they
steamroll right over him. "Little Sweet Loss," "No Daring Is Fatal"
and "That's Not Something I Could Do," suffer from some heavy
handed production that bloats these otherwise strong and well
written songs, which with a lighter hand would have been real gems,
and perhaps performed live, they indeed are. A case where sometimes less
is more.
Although there are a few spots on the
album that suffer from the "Nashville Rash," the songs themselves are
still heads and shoulders above typical Nashville radio fodder, and
overall, Right Here And Now is hardly a stinker. When they
get it right, which is fortunately more often than not, they get it
RIGHT, and Owen and his songs positively
shine. The disc's absolute highlight is the bluegrass inflected
spiritual, "Faith Without Works." The melody is infectiously catchy,
and here Owen and the song are front and center, with a more stripped
down production. "Move Around Money" is a witty, non-cliched swipe at
corporate America. "For Old Times' Sake" is a very well written,
clever "about face," on the subject of meeting up with an old
flame, giving the reasons why it would be best not to meet
"for old times' sake." The pretty ballad, "Before The Night Becomes
Dawn," is a really nice variation on the theme that being a musician
for a living, is hard on the love life.
Owen Temple has his eye on that brass
ring, and you can't fault him for going after it, after all, that's
what the dream's all about. Reaching for the mainstream doesn't always
equate to "selling out," and in this case, it's an attempt at trying
to steer things back to where they should be. There are a few
mis-steps on Right Here And Now, but he's only 25, and just
finding his bearings, so chalk it up to a "learning curve." But his
songwriting skills are growing by leaps and bounds, and although he
doesn't have an outstanding voice, it's still far above competent.
The "hits" still outweigh the "misses" on Right Here And Now,
and even the "misses" are "hits" compared to what mainstream country
radio is offering these days. Overlook Owen's occasional growing
pains, and instead enjoy the more abundant triumphs of a
very promising young artist who's discovering who he is, and is
beginning to find his voice.
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AnnMarie
Harrington Take Country Back October 2002