Begins with PERFECT LOSER which is a peppy, funky number. A teasing intro on the guitar is followed by some more solo work with the vocals lazing in and out. The chorus hits you fresh and you instantly know this is a great start to an album. The band seems to have given it all in terms of achieving an Experimental sound on this first song. HELTER SKELTER appears to begin exactly where LOSER finishes. The cleaner patches on this show the heavy influence of "MAYER" in the band’s sound, and the song goes on to progress onto similar territories as LOSER. BROKEN WINGS could have been more interesting; it’s a slow number, with the guitaring again coming off good, especially the way the solo breaks in in between; a bit more work on the vocals might have just filled the void I felt while listening to this one.
Enter JUMP with a very funky intro. Part psychedelic at times, watch out for the drums and the bass, they really set the mood. MOONLIT HIGHWAY is progressive, with the teasing main riff back, which seems to have become the band’s signature by now. Lyrics are pretty good too. Now comes my favorite one of the album YOU'RE A STAR. A brilliant composition accompanied by powerful guitar and drum work, it was nice to see a different kind of sound on the vocals. A perfect Alternative Rock track with elements of Funk and Jazz, and a delightful solo too. And yes, watch out for the lyrics as well!
RAINSHINE is a very BEATLES kind of a song, with a lot of background vocals and a lot of fun singing. Decent track and good music too. CONFUSION is a fitting conclusion to an album whose central theme is revolving around the random chain of thoughts in the mind. “When am I gone down the hall singing some songs for me” is exactly the state of mind you’re in, in a classroom, aren’t you? The compositions on the guitar are delicious, both on the intro, the middle solos and the end. I also like the contrast in the first and the last song; HELTER SKELTER bursts into your ears and CONFUSION silently leaves a trail behind, which suits their concept.
The album does leave a positive feeling at the end. It is a mixture of beautiful acoustic work, cleverly crafted solos, and a good bass sound. The vocalists have done a fine job too, but they’ve shown at quite a few places that there is a lot more to their voice than it appears. A dreamy concept doesn’t necessarily have to make you sound dreamy as well. That’s what I felt was the problem in the vocals at times. They’ve got great instrumentalists, and great work on the sound too; a good, powerfully explored sound on the vocals is all it needs.The idea is clear; they’ve said all along what kind of music they want to make, and what’s important after getting a good start is to capitalize on it and never look back.
Bottom Line
There is tremendous scope for an even better sounding band, and with the talent they have, PROSODY should create waves in the future for sure. For now, PAPER PLANES is the album to listen to in the monsoons, so go DOWNLOAD it!
