John Graham-Cold Sun

Distinctive Records
2015

Due to drop on June 29th, "Cold Sun" is a new album from electronic musician/producer John Graham. It is preceded by the single "Roll the Dice" and for Graham (A UK-born but US-based artist who is otherwise known as Quivver) it is a chance to further stretch his creative muscles while exploring the ins and outs of ultramodern indie-rock. Seeing as John Graham is primary known for his work as a house and techno DJ and producer (a field where he's viewed as a legend!) this new adventure could have been filled with pitfalls and misdirected notions. Or worse yet it could have been an exercise in ego gratification! If you need a example of that kind of noise then see anything said and/or done by Kanye West!!  Thank God then that John Graham is comfortable enough with his talent that he let's his work speak for itself. And if there's one thing that this album's opening number, "All Fall Down", does well it is speaking volumes about the talent behind it's creation! Every bit the potential single that the swagger-filled "Roll the Dice" is, "All Fall Down" sets things in motion and before long you're quite likely to find yourself being swept away by this album's overwhelming energy and unbridled passion! With "Cold Sun" you'll find the story of one remarkable man making exemplary indie rock and by the time the CD's third track, "Revolution", is over it's hard not to feel a real kinetic connection with this album's architect. For "Cold Sun" John Graham drew upon influences such as the Stone Roses ("Roll the Dice"), Kasabian, Soup Dragons, The Cure ("On Mondays"), Primitive Radio Gods, Depeche Mode ("All Fall Down" and "Dustpipe") and the like so that he could present listeners with a different sound-scape and that's never more apparent than on the elegant "We Come & Go". Falling closer to the sythnpop/new wave sound of Alphaville, "We Come & Go" is a (take time to stop and smell the roses) moment of clarity on the album and a divine one at that! The same can be said of the reflective "Before Long" so it is rather interesting how John decided to place the two numbers back to back. Overall the decision works and as witnessed on "Pretty Dreams" it's a structure that he is comfortable working on. Elsewhere we find John Graham hard at work on radio-friendly indie rock ("Something New") as well as crafty electronic studio rock such as "Shake". Oddly shuffled away towards the end of the album with "Remarkable Things",  "Only A Moment" almost feels out of place as far as where it lies on "Cold Sun". A strong number with a distinct carbon footprint, "Only A Moment" would have been better placed up front and center. Especially as this indie rock spark of lightning has a real driving force behind it!  Hopefully it won't be lost to listener as it's far too good to be placed in the back row. Meanwhile "Remarkable Things" closes "Cold Sun" on a decent enough note and while it doesn't exactly live up to it's name it's far from a album filler. It's simply one track I could take or leave. That's right. There's only one number out of the whole lot that I could do without. Just one song! That means when it's all over and the points are finally tallied it ends up that "Cold Sun" is a winning release for John Graham! This album is also a win for indie rock fans as well as those who love the music of this talented musician!! With only a few weeks to go before it's due for release I would recommend keeping an eye out for "Cold Sun". As a fan of all things rock I will be adding this one to my personal collection as it is a great example of contemporary indie-rock done right! What's more, "Cold Sun" is a solid tribute to many cool alternative bands that I discovered in my teens. Listening to "Cold Sun" is like rediscovering a part of my younger years that I had somehow forgotten about. John Graham pays homage to bands I grew up loving like Depeche Mode and The Cure and he does it in such a way as to give the listener great new rock with some older charm. This was a nice change of pace from all the metal I usual receive and I will be revisiting this album at my earliest convenience!