Ian McGlynn
Tomorrow’s Re-Taken
(Bailey Park Records, 2007)
Normally, I wouldn’t write a review for an album that I contributed the slightest sound or production idea to, but this time around is different for a few reasons. The first reason is that Tomorrow’s Re-Taken is a remix album composed primarily of source material from singer/songwriter Ian McGlynn’s debut album Tomorrow’s Taken. Reason number two is that the one remix I contributed to this ten song album was produced as Such, Broken Glass which is a moniker I no longer use. The last reason is that my remix was completed over three years ago. From the way the rest of these remixes sound, it’s safe to assume they were all written and finished years ago.
There are a few semi-interesting sounds for the casual listener here, but certainly nothing the seasoned music fan hasn’t heard before. The remixing styles range from 90’s-era, 100% Dance club music to ‘are you kidding me?!’ acid jazz to fake, 80’s post-punk with not a whole lot in between. This motley crew of genres wouldn’t sound so completely off the wall if Ian McGlynn’s most noted influences weren’t the likes of Coldplay, Ben Folds, and The Beatles. I’m sure he got a kick out of hearing his voice and instrumentation re-worked a whole album’s worth, but after the 9 minutes of preset drum and bass that works as the album’s centerpiece I’m quite ready to give Tomorrow… back.
Unless we’re talking about one artist re-writing the entirety of another artist’s record (which would be more of a cover album), a remix album is, by default, a mish-mash of many separate ideas. This common trait makes remix albums appeal to very distinct crowds; the die-hard fans, the remixers of the music, and the writer of the original music. Sadly, I doubt many people outside of those three groups will be looking for Tomorrow’s Re-Taken.
– Patric Fallon
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