Through mixing dance beats, a touch of electronica, strong vocals, and engaging lyrical content, songwriter Alex Musto has struck a chord with his group Spiro Agnew and their latest album Oh What Model Citizens We Be.
Though there are countless electronic inspired albums released each year, few are able to defy the genres stereotypes and rise above the crowd with a personalized approach to this oft-heard music. Musto uses his uncanny ability to write the perfect lyric for the moment and his ample guitar chops to not only create deep levels of interest in his writing, but achieving musical personalization at the same time. Musto firmly grounds his songs with strong grooves, mostly done with a combination of live drums and electronic percussion from various sources and with a penchant for retro keyboard hand claps. Then, once that foundation is established he layers on guitars, keyboards and vocals, manifesting his muse into notes and chords.
One of the strongest aspects of Musto’s writing is his guitar work. Though often simple, on songs such as “Waste My Time,” the guitar parts effectively create that extra level of interest that is needed to fully grab the listener’s ears, holding them in the band’s grasp until the last notes have faded into the ether. After listening to these tracks, one gets the sense that Musto thinks about each instrument as just tools in his compositional palette, rather than voices that should stand out against the rest. It is this emphasis on blending instruments as painters do colors that goes a long way to making this record so successful.
Get your copy here: http://www.whatmodelcitizens.com/
Review by Matt Warnock
