Landing on Planet Neil is a beautifully quirky experience…….
Planet Neil is the musical brainchild of Norfolk-based singer-songwriter and sound-maker extraordinaire, Neil Dyer. Most of his previous releases including songs like Last Year and Photograph possess all of the obvious components like a good rhythm, a bit of decent melody, sometimes the good use of string-sounding instruments, well-delivered vocals, etcetera. However, the component that perhaps sets Planet Neil creations apart and, for me at least, the thing that catches your ear and compels you to take a second listen is a natural quirkiness within the overall body of what otherwise might be a bog standard synth-driven song. This latest offering, which is simply titled ‘Intentional’, I am pleased to say, does not disappoint in any of the aforementioned departments, and does perhaps even go a little further than previous releases in the delivery of quirkiness. This is good. This creates uniqueness where otherwise there might be vanilla.
Intentional starts with a good groove, a sort of urgency that has two levels. The bass line and rhythm section provide an almost-constant urgency, but one that remains rather cleverly, as both a driving force for the song and also a backdrop for other layers to skim over. Having commenced with a good groove, it simply continues with that very same good groove throughout, cheekily poking its tongue out at the more conventional followers of formulaic structures in songwriting. This is not a verse-chorus-verse-chorus kind of creation. It has its own path to follow and it does so extremely well. This is an interesting piece of music. It’s not traditional, nor is it conventional, but it is superb in many ways that tradition or convention might struggle to create. There is also an extended version which is very cool indeed delivering a more dramatic take on the original and is most definitely worth a listen.
I know not whether Mr. Dyer consciously or concertedly cultivates the quirkiness of his musical creations, but either way, it works a treat, be it accidental or ‘intentional’.
BB STARS
3 out of 5
Musk – BB Music Team
Intentional will be released on all major platforms on the 17th July. We will be posting the links, but if you want to hear it before then you can catch it on the BB Show on Tuesday evening from 6 o’clock UK time…..
Alternatively…..
Click here ⬇️ for a taste of some previous Planet Neil