Dan Friel - Ghost Town

Dan Friel
Ghost Town
(05.2008, Important)
Verdict = A bombastic anthemic electronic noise party

Whether with his band, Parts & Labor, or on his own, something about everything Dan Friel touches seems to end up awesome, loud and glorious. On Ghost Town, his solo debut, Friel molds vociferous, noisy electronics into victorious pop anthems that seem to expand your lung capacity with utter freshness. It is a giddy, mind melting affair to be sure. The kind that can drive you mad and leave you frothing at the mouth. Friel seems to know the boundaries of his signature sound, limiting Ghost Town to eight succinct tracks of noise pop. I think anything more might provoke spontaneous combustion due to its sheer overbearing awesomeness. No these eight simple tracks are the perfect amount for normal human capacities. Just enough to get you sweaty and happy and seeing life just a little differently, Ghost Town packs the perfect punch. While the album is by no means a rock record (at least in the more conventional sense of the term), Friel’s touch is unmistakable and shares much with his work with Parts & Labor. For those who loved the noisy, soaring aesthetics of Parts & Labor but couldn’t quite get past the mediocre vocals, Ghost Town is a godsend. And for those of you who hate Parts & Labor (if there is such a person) or couldn’t care less, Ghost Town is both un-hate-able and un-“meh”-able. Give up, Dan Friel has created an entire party that can fit in a compact disc or 12” vinyl, who are you to try and avoid it? Watch out because hearing this album is simultaneous with becoming obsessed with it.

-Mr. Thistle