THE BEST OF ANTIDEPRESSIVE DELIVERY

First things first: this is not a compilation. That said, while I haven't heard the rest of this band's catalog, the extremely high quality of the music contained on this album makes me think that its title is nonetheless accurate. Anti-Depressive Delivery plays a kind of bluesy crossover prog that has "vintage" written all over it- everything from the guitars to the nigh- omnipresent organ sounds like it came straight out of the annals of classic rock. Despite this, "The Best of Antidepressive Delivery" is far from being yet another unoriginal poseur-and that's coming from someone who typically doesn't like this kind of "intentionally vintage" rock music. Too often I feel that this kind of music has all the parts in place but lacks the fire and passion that made the actual music of the 70s so good.

Fortunately, that is not the case with this album. The songwriting is stellar, the musicianship is top-notch and the vocal delivery is varied and powerful. This is a wonderful album that is being distributed via free download by the band, so any fan of this kind of blues-based prog- rock would be remiss to miss out on this listen (assonance unintentional).

"In Pine" begins the album with a rather sedate guitar part which is quickly joined by percussion and keyboards. The song quickly drops into a nice rhythmic groove before vocals are added. A combination of these vocals with some awesome guitar parts gives the song a very strong melodic tone, and the addition of some vintage sounding organ makes the track feel like a classic. A more downtempo section adds variety as well before the song launches into a ripping guitar solo that leads back to the first motif. Overall, "In Pine" sets the tone of the album very well as well as being a great, high-energy song in and of itself.

"Glasses" follows, starting off with some psychedelic guitar and some awesome grooving bass and drums. Minimal keyboards enhance the dreamy effect, and when the vocals enter they take on a slightly more languid, melancholy feel to match the music. All the elements coalesce to create a song that's both spacey and driving, and an awesome instrumental section in the middle featuring dueling guitar and keyboards make this one of the most satisfying 4 minute songs I can think of offhand.

"Lifekeeper" begins with a single piano tone, played in various rhythms, before being joined by drums and guitar, which together begin a bombastic instrumental introduction to the song. This motif is dropped about a minute in, however, to be replaced by much more understated guitar, keyboards and bass as well as vocals. I'm really quite impressed by the vocals of this group; the singer seems equally confident belting out a high-energy anthem like "In Pine" and turning in a more emotionally nuanced, quieter performance here. I can hear shades of the Budgie song "Parents" in this first section of "Lifekeeper," and I definitely mean that as a complement. The addition of an organ only enhances the bluesy, classic rock feel. As the song begins to draw to a close, the vocals go from being a bit subdued to being extremely powerful and raw-sounding, and by the time an organ-backed guitar solo begins, quickly followed by a solo on said organ, you know you're listening to a bona-fide epic, a track that would be considered a classic if there were any justice in the world.

"Goodbye" begins on a jazzier note, with some awesome vocal harmonies and scatting, of all things. The song continues on this road, with some subdued piano serving as the main instrument behind absolutely stellar vocals, including some breathtaking falsetto. As the song progresses, however, it begins to deviate, adding synths and even some vocoded vocals. All these added sounds are arranged extremely well, however, and despite these more modern touches the song never loses the smoky, jazz-club feel. A wonderful song that packs a lot of content into its less than 4 minute running time.

"True Love" starts with a bit more up-tempo guitar riff, and makes use of some horns to set up some awesome instrumentation on the verse before the heavier, guitar riff-led chorus kicks in. Despite the less-than-cheerful lyrical subject matter (from what I can tell the song tells the story of a prostitute, but don't quote me on that) the song feels breezy and carefree, and another stellar guitar solo towards the end of the track seals this up as an incredibly diverse, satisfying track on an album full of songs that meet that description.

"Alive" is the last track of the album, as well as the longest. Beginning with some great guitar and organ, the track manages to pull off quite a bit of musical variety in only the first minute before vocals come in. This song in particular I think highlights one of the things that makes Anti-Depressive Delivery's music on this album so good; that is, that every instrument, no matter how much of a support role it's playing, now matter how far back in the mix it is, is playing interesting music. You could take some of these instrumental parts alone and have them be more interesting than some bands' primary melodies. The vocals continue to be excellent on the track, as does the songwriting, as "Alive" manages to switch between several diverse motifs seamlessly; never seeming forced and never getting boring. Every melodic motif the song brings up is catchy and pleasant to listen to, while still being musically interesting. The several excellent guitar solos certainly don't hurt the song either. "Alive" is certainly a worthy closer for the album and one of the freshest, most listenable songs I can think of-despite its vintage sensibilities.

Overall, "The Best of Antidepressive Delivery" is one of those albums where everything just comes together perfectly. This is one of those albums I just can't listen to without mentally pausing every few minutes to think "wow, this is a great album." This is an album that deserves to be listened to, shared, and talked about, and I can't recommend it highly enough.

5/5