Blurred Vision: Organized Insanity

I love it when young bands hit it out of the park with their first album and that is exactly what we have here with Blurred Vision's Organized Insanity. Apparently a few years back they received a glowing endorsement from Roger Waters but I never heard anything about that at the time.

In the band are Ben Riley (drums), Sepp Osley (vocals, guitars) and Sohl Osley (bass). Guest musician Joel Lightman adds keyboards and vocals.

The album was produced by the one and only Terry Brown (Rush) which is a huge compliment to the band. He obviously realized their potential and I have to say Organized Reality is a fantastic album. The music is certainly proggy in places but this is not a purely progressive band per se. They have a more psychedelic pop sound with proggy touches here and there and are influenced by Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree and The Beatles. The music is very catchy and accessible but don't let that scare you as this is very intelligent stuff and extremely well done.

The album begins with "No More War", an accessible slice of smartly played pop rock with a whole lot of substance. It begins with choppy guitar rhythms and chanting vocals, and a slightly funky feel with a fat bass line and an irresistible chorus. The song clearly has a political bent and it is nice see meaningful lyrics in such a young band. On "Rollin' On" the sound is a little moodier with percolating keyboards and a slower paced '70s influenced guitar solo. At times I hear a bit of Porcupine Tree and Pink Floyd in the mood laden bits and the psych inspired acoustic guitar is very cool. "Tonight" features gently played guitars and keys before the tempo picks up and soaring background vocals make this another mouthwatering earworm. The subtle builds remind me of something Coldplay would do. On "Long May You Run" the talking style vocals have a definite Roger Waters feel. The band must have been listening to Pink Floyd's The Final Cut when recording this as it has that melancholic vibe that is so prevalent on that album. The soaring lead guitar solo channels Gilmour with its crisp and clean tone and feel. The Beatles can be heard on "Dear John", a lovely tribute to John Lennon while "The Arms Of Our World" and "All I Wanted" are melodic pop rock gems.

The album ends with the most progressive cuts; "The Keeper" and "Organized Insanity". The former has heavier Eastern style riffs, cool chord progressions and ultra-tight musicianship while the latter stands out for its excellent bass line and catchy vocal arrangement.

It is great to see another young Canadian band producing such high quality material and considering this is a debut release it is all the more special. Check out the Blurred Vision website for more information.

Track Listing:
1. No More War (4:02)
2. Rollin' On (4:36)
3. Tonight (3:40)
4. Long May You Run (4:41)
5. Promise (4:09)
6. Dear John (4:26)
7. Arms Of Our World (4:26)
8. All I Wanted (3:21)
9. Wherever You Are (3:48)
10. The Keeper (5:12)
11. Organized Insanity (5:31)

Added: August 28th 2015
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Band's Official Site
Hits: 1862
Language: english

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