Music from Air - Steve Unurh

Music From Air (Steve Unruh, 2014)

1. Overture - 3:46
2. The Measure That's Missing - 4:40
3. Broken Love Song (feat. Dylan Paul, vox) - 3:58
4. Ghost Song (feat. Granvile O'Neal, vox) - 5:34
5. Astral Shards - 5:04
6. Salamander Swing (feat. Stan Kessler, trumpet) - 1:41
7. Silent Crescendo (feat. Jennifer Coville, vox) - 4:24
8. Life Without Pain - 6:16
9. Orchestral Theme from Air (feat. Lawrence Chamber Orchestra) - 3:10
10. Overcorrection - 2:50
11. Donnie's Punk Marching Band Tune (feat. Dylan Paul, vox and the BRC Brass Band) - 2:43
12. Dusk - 1:52
13. Hey There Love Tonight (feat. Granvile O'Neal and Laura Cossey, vox) - 3:51
14. Air Minor Blues (feat. Stan Kessler, trumpet) - 3:38
15. Escape - 2:26
16. The Measure That's Missing (String Quartet Version) - 3:17

An independent artist's soundtrack to an independent musical, Music From Air is about as legit as it gets. I still need to see the movie at some point, but I wanted to hear the music first. With such a diverse song cycle covering folk, jazz, country, classical, doo-wop, hard rock, punk, rap, and blues, the album defies the odds of its incredible breadth and coalesces into an organic and unified whole.

The solo Steve songs here are fantastic.  "The Measure That's Missing" is a sharp-edged, high-octane rocker that's just breathtakingly fun. The instrumental "Astral Shards" weaves a mesmerizing delayed guitar pattern into dramatic guitar and violin solos. "Life Without Pain", "Dusk", and "Escape" are poignant, beautiful ballads that showcase introspective melodicism, while "Overcorrection" is a treat - some white boy rap with fun rhythmic play in the 5/8-over-4/4 chorus.

The guest artists are just as delightful.  All the vocalists are exceptionally talented. Dylan Paul brings infectious exuberance that turns delicate and fragile on a dime. Granvile O'Neal has a warm and tender style on "Ghost Song".  I wanted to hear him duet with Steve, but if we have to choose duet partners, I'm glad we got the outstanding Laura Cossey on "Hey There Love Tonight". Jennifer Coville's performance on "Silent Crescendo" mixes self-deprecation, disappointment, anger, and resignation to fine effect.  Stan Kessler's trumpet work on the jazzy "Salamander Swing" (which also features an awesome bass solo!) and "Air Minor Blues" is top-notch, as is the BRC Brass Band's performance on "Donnie's Punk Marching Band Tune" and the Lawrence Chamber Orchestra in "Orchestral Theme From Air".  Of course, Steve wrote and arranged it all, and he plays every other instrument on the album, including acoustic and electric guitars, bass, drums, piano, keyboard, violin, flute, and I'm sure I'm missing several instruments...

Perhaps the best testaments to the high quality and depth of this diverse album are the opening and closing tracks. The "Overture" incorporates overt themes from at least five of the songs, with stylistic shout-outs to several more in its brief three and half minutes, yet it sounds like a single musical work.  Meanwhile, on the other end of the album, the string quartet version of "The Measure That's Missing" transforms the high-energy aggression of the original into a calming, gorgeous instrumental that makes the melodies entirely new. Such a fantastic ending to an exceptional album.

Arbitrary rating: 5 out of 5 melodies made new