Desmond Drive is an Atlanta band with a big sound.  Practicing the fine art of melody-driven rock in the vein of The Beatles or XTC, Desmond Drive literally turns heads when they start to play.  Vocalist/keyboardist Bill Shaouy was raised on great melodic pop and managed to internalize that sensibility.  It comes through in droves on Desmond Drive’s debut album, I Called I.  With the help of Chuck Kelly (drums, percussion); Steve Platnick (Bass), and Rob Gal (guitarist and Producer), Shaouy offers up some of the sweetest pop confections you’re likely to hear.

Desmond Drive travels the highways and byways of big melodies and strong pop themes.  The fact that these are applied to a distinct Americana style makes for a highly listenable and universal album that eludes distinct classification while constantly breaking new ground.  I Called I opens with Two-Headed Beast, classic Americana in the image of Canadian trailblazers Blue Rodeo.  Vocalist Bill Shaouy has a heavenly voice that’s as smooth as anything and twice as pleasant.  Desmond Drive nearly reinvents themselves on Poker Face, with a strong Roy Orbison thing going on.  This is pure 1960’s pop music; a love song with a slight country twang and big harmonies.  Desmond Drive changes gears again on Isn’t It A Wonder, a Beatles-esque pop ditty that’s bizarrely beautiful in the most esoteric sense.

If you’ve ever spent much time on the folk scene in Upstate New York you may have come across a band called The Foothills Trio.  I mention them because Desmond Drive’s next song, Goodbye, sounds like The Foothills Trio sat down to jam with the Traveling Wilburies.  The song carries tremendous harmonies and outstanding guitar work.  Your Name is a sweet pop song that will popular for mix-tapes but is somewhat complacent, missing a lot of the energy encountered thus far on I Called I.

Simple Things, however, is probably the highlight of the album.  Shaouy sounds inspired on this gem, which is as varied and complex as pop music gets.  Simple Things has an almost Shakespearean quality about it; it’s snappy with great hooks and a tremendous sense of movement.  Leader finds Desmond Drive in the midst of 180-degree turn.  It’s an introspective and almost brutally honest self-assessment.  It’s a beautiful song with something of a John Lennon feel to it.  My Will is the most straight forward pop/rock song on the album.  It stands out the more so for seeming slightly out of place here.  The song runs like a nervous child through the verse but finds purpose in the well-crafted and melodic chorus.

Happy Tollbooth Guy sounds like something that might show up in an Off-Broadway show.  It’s a bit campy and upbeat and showcases a vaguely theatrical style that runs just below the surface of much of Desmond Drive’s music.  Stylistically it sounds like Billy Joel and William Finn sat down at the same piano together.  My Tribe is a great upbeat pop tune that could cross over as a dance hit, ala Fatboy Slim.  My Tribe is the track with the greatest commercial potential, and honestly could be a dance hit with a remix by the right DJ.  I Called I closes on a theatrical note, with the spiritually heavy One Night.  Desmond Drive really gets down to their roots on these dramatic piano-driven tunes.

Desmond Drive is all over the musical map on I Called I.  While this is not a key to commercial success in this day and age, it has always been a formula for classic, memorable, sometimes even iconic albums.  I don’t know if I’m willing to quite call I Called I iconic, but it’s in the ballpark.  The melodic sense here is stunning, and the composition style is unique and varied enough to make a distinct statement.  Desmond Drive is lyrically competent and unafraid to take musical chances.  Fans of folks like The Beatles, The Moody Blues and Dennis DeYoung-era Styx will love this.  Fans of melodic pop rock and musicians in general will also find I Called I very gratifying.  I Called I is the sort of album that ends up on Desert Island lists, and definitely something you want on your to-do list.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Desmond Drive at www.desmonddrive.com.  You can purchase a copy of I Called I at www.cdbaby.com/cd/desmonddrive.

Reviewed By Wildy Haskell

Reviews, Wildy Haskell Desmond Drive, I Called I

With a lot of today’s music following the same lack-luster trends, the majority of the songs being released and promoted, no matter what genre, seem to sound alike. With nothing to separate one song from another, it is not surprising that the music industry as a whole finds itself in the crisis that it’s in.

To repair some of the damage that has already been done, the music industry can take a lesson from Bill Shaouy, the singer and songwriter for the band Desmond Drive. With Desmond Drive, Shaouy has created an album that is unlike most of the material being produced today. The band’s album is called “I Called I”.

Along with Bill Shaouy on vocals and keyboards, the rest of Desmond Drive is made up of Rob Gal on guitars, Steve Platnick on bass, and Chuck Kelly on drums. To help Shaouy shape the music for the album, Rob Gal also helped to produce the release.

The music by Desmond Drive on “I Called I” is a little different. Bill Shaouy did not compose the songs while using the trends of today’s music; if anything, the music of Desmond Drive is based upon material from earlier decades. The music contains a fair amount of references to the British Invasion, as well as other rock eras from the past.

Much of the British Invasion influence comes from references to The Beatles. With the orchestrations that help to bring depth to Desmond Drive’s album, you can almost imagine some of the songs being written by Lennon/McCartney. The song “Isn’t It A Wonder” sound like it could have come from “The Magical Mystery Tour” album.

While more Fab Four references exist in the band’s music, the British Invasion was not the only influence to Shaouy’s writing. While listening to the album, you can almost hear references to Springsteen and Bob Seeger. There is also an unmistakable reference to Roy Orbison.

The song “Poker Face” sound like it could have come from any part of Orbison’s song catalog. The style of the track would have fit perfectly with Orbison. And of course, the timpani in the song definitely conjure up visions of Orbison’s music. Plus, with Shaouy having a voice that is almost operatic in quality at times, the parallels are certainly apparent.

The most interesting track on the album is “One Night”. The seven-plus minute opus includes an orchestral beginning and has a style that reminds you of Todd Rundgren.

While most of the album “I Called I” from Desmond Drive was composed while using many influences from the past, the entire album is not that way. There are a few hints at modern day music. The track “My Tribe,” for instance, sounds very fresh with loop-like drumming and other instrumentation that make the song sound very modern.

The opening recitation by the Greek Chorus also separates the album from other current releases. The chorus makes several appearances throughout the release, including the third and final time when the speakers are interrupted by a phone call. This adds a little humor to the album, and, in a way, tells the listener not to take things so seriously. 

Using influences from the past, and adding a little humor to the release, Bill Shaouy and the rest of Desmond Drive have created an album that should make people who want something more from today’s music happy. For that “something more” in your music, check out the current release from Desmond Drive, “I Called I”. 

To check out the music by Bill Shaouy and the rest of Desmond Drive, visit them online at www.desmonddrive.com.

Reviewed By Matheson Kamin

Matheson Kamin, Reviews Desmond Drive, I Called I

When there are no constraints from a big high and mighty record label dictating what you should sound like, musical creativity abounds.  The four guys in Desmond Drive take full advantage of this independent spirit to deliver an original, fun quirky album.  After all, when you pick up an instrument you play it, not work it.

Vocalist Bill Shaouy has a strong unique voice that carries the band’s debut album I Called I.  His performance always sits comfortably and his stylings reflect many of the great singers from an earlier era.  In the opener “Two-Headed Beast” Shaouy’s leads are prominent in the mix and his melodic delivery is reminiscent of early Bruce Springsteen, albeit with a much clearer, un-gritty tone.  The long held vocals in the bridge of “Isn’t It a Wonder” conjure up comparisons to Roy Orbison, as do the underlying chord progression.

The Beatles are also a major influence on the band from the line “I am a lover of love songs McCartney’s” from “Simple Things” to the Lennon-esque vocal turns in “Your Name” and the “na na nas” in “Leader.”  The chord progression in the fully orchestrated number “One Night” draws similarities to the supergroup’s “She Came In Through the Bathroom Window.”  Parallel with the Beatles later music and grand production, thanks to their illustrious producer Sir George Martin, “One Night” features a lovely string introduction and a dynamic extended fade out with arco cellos overlaying the electric guitar and bells.

Overall, the instrumentation and production on I Called I is fantastic.  The Greek chorus also adds mild amusement interspliced throughout the album – especially the interjection involving the interrupting ringing telephone.  However, Desmond Drive could benefit from churning out more effective lyrics.  While “Happy Tollbooth Guy” is a neat introspective, random story that paints a decent picture: “Like the taillights from every passerby / Go the thoughts in his head,” it would be a shame if the band suffered from cliché or mediocre lyrics like in “My Will” with the recurring rhyme “…but then my will goes beddy-bye / Don’t know why.”

Desmond Drive has got a great sense of musicality and high energy.  I Called I is a definite recommendation for a fun listen off the beaten path.  For the sophomore album, hopefully listeners can expect more of the same but with deeper, more intelligent lyrics.

Reviewed By Kelly O’Neil

Kelly O'Neil, Reviews Desmond Drive, I Called I

If you’re lucky, you were around during the late eighties and early nineties when MTV capped weekends off with the pioneering alternative segment 120 Minutes. Remember The Replacements, Sisters of Mercy and Jesus and Mary Chain? How about Camper Van Beethoven, Blue Aeroplanes, Psychedelic Furs, Smithereens, Hoodoo Gurus, Flesh For Lulu and Kitchens of Distinction? You could count on The Cure, REM, Depeche Mode and The Smiths showing up on 120 Minutes but most importantly, you could rely on some of the most challenging and diverse music being created at the time on this show.

Spinning Desmond Drive’s I Called I is like a 120 Minutes event unto itself. Sometimes REM (particularly on the opening track “Two-Headed Beast”), sometimes Talking Heads, sometimes Camper Van Beethoven, sometimes The La’s and sometimes Dream Syndicate, Desmond Drive are masters of the lofty alt hook. You know, the breezy catcher in the sky that made you idle up and plant a wary hand on a Goth chick’s knee and ponder together why conventional rock lacked alternative’s all-purpose integrity.

Portions of Desmond Drive’s alt pop groove bears a doting wave to Swinging London and Liverpool with a Beatles twitch on the wistful “Goodbye” even as they wink in the direction of the late Roy Orbison on the effervescent “Poker Face,” complete with dramatic kettle drum rolls and sha-la-la backing vocals.

Led by vocalist/keyboardist Bill Shaouy, I Called I is a tuneful, meticulous and good-natured love of independent music where many extras are called to join the group’s world party in the form of gang choruses and interlude narration, as well as string and brass instrumentation to accompany their lighthearted sarcasm and frank idealism.

At times, the mix of Shaouy’s folksy vocals overpower the tunes, but by and large this album is full of pensive stargazing ditties such as “My Will,” “Happy Tollbooth Guy” and “Your Name.” The latter song is largely like Shaouy giving an echoing Kimball organ demo as used to be the norm in malls long since plowed to their foundations.

What’s especially strong about I Called I is its multiplicity even for an alt rock record. Out of nowhere comes percussion slapping and detailed soul and rock fusions ala Paul Simon’s Rhythm of the Saints on “Tribe.” The album closes on a dreamy seven-plus-minute spectacle with a flowing seam of sedate organs, bum-ah-bum vocal fills, whispery guitar slides, a synthetic breakdown and a piano, chime and guitar finale reminiscent of Guns n’ Roses “Estranged” on the charismatic “One Night.”

For a self-produced album, the members of Desmond Drive (also including Rob Gal on guitars, Steve Platnick on bass and Chuck Kelly on drums) have come up with a skilled and optimistic album done strictly for the joy of creation, much as the alternative bands of the past were provoked to do. The Cure are back in business these days with the colorful 4:13 Dream, thus let Desmond Drive follow behind to usher a recharged 120 ticks of alt rock revision bliss…

Reviewed By Rhonda Readence

Reviews, Rhonda Readence Desmond Drive, I Called I

I Called I by Desmond Drive features the strange combination of Woody Allen-like intensive self-examination — sometimes in the form of spoken word bits from an aptly named Greek Chorus — and melodic, yet no less equally internalized, pop-rock songs. Such ingredients sometimes beg the nervous question: Is this just music, or full-on music therapy?

Vocalist Bill Shaouy starts this project off on a serious note with “Two-Headed Beast”, where he refers to himself as, “this strange thing I called “I””. Its lyric, however, goes on to produce the impression that male/female attraction is a knowable thing, or at least a halfway understandable concept. Keen insight is provided with knowing lines like: “But love reflects what I don’t see/More than a mirror does.” Yet during the very next song, “Poker Face”, such comprehension is seemingly tossed to the wind. “’Cause I read in a magazine/That love is just a game of cards/And if I tip my hand, I give away/My only chance to win your heart.” Let’s hope Shaouy doesn’t gullibly believe everything he reads because a heart is far too vital to simply gamble away and lose in some sort of casino of life.

Desmond Drive is at its best when things are kept to their aural basics. It’s impossible, for instance, not to warm up to “Goodbye”, which skips to a sweet, jingle-jangle guitar part and a spot-on harmony straight out of the Mammas & the Papas’ How-To-Do-Group-Singing-Right book. Apparently, McGuinn and McGuire are still getting higher, vicariously through Desmond Drive. This four-piece – which also features Rob Gal (guitars), Steve Platnick (bass), and Chuck Kelly (drums) – gets a bit precious on songs like “Simple Things”, however. Shaouy’s voice is just a little too choir boy perfect to pass for a legitimate rock & roll singer. Even pop-rock, which is the style combination this band presumably loves best, requires equal doses of beauty and beast, but I Called I often focuses too much attention on being beatific, when it could have used a few more balancing beastly moments. 

While it’s the toe-tapping sound that often attracts the listener first, there are also examples of fine lyricism on I Called I. One such word standout is found with “Happy Tollbooth Guy”. This song takes the unlikely tactic of getting inside the head of a tollbooth operator — if such a thing is even possible. On the one hand, this solitary man “doesn’t mind his island.” However, “oh, the life in his head.” These words suggest that even the simplest laborer can have an exotic life inside the limitless confines of his mind. And that’s good news for the mayor (and residents) of Simpelton.

Desmond Drive can get a little too precious lyrically too, however, just as it does with its over-perfected musical vibe. Shaouy begins “My Will” by stating: “It’s good to read, it’s good to learn/It’s good to love every page that you turn.” And while literary-inspired rock is always welcome in the many-times Philistine world of rock & roll, this stating of the obvious veers dangerously close to a Sesame Street song of encouragement. It’s always better to let the listener guess which books you read, rather than telling them that you actually read.

One can’t help but wonder what Desmond Drive would sound like if Shaouy ever took up a two-pack a day habit and a steady listening diet of AC/DC music. Maybe this would toughen the band up enough to get taken a little more seriously. I Called I is quite good, for certain, but it could be even better.

Reviewed By Dan MacIntosh

Dan MacIntosh, Reviews Desmond Drive, I Called I

Pop music gets a bad rap these days, but that’s bound to happen when the formulaic have the biggest financial backing and promotional campaign.  If you’re wondering if inventive arrangements and infectious hooks can still coexist, Desmond Drive is here as confirmation.  I Called I is their debut album, a collection of original material from bandleader Bill Shaouy.  Taking cues from the likes of Bruce Springsteen, The Beatles, and XTC, Desmond Drive treats each composition with care, playing together with a comfort level that suggests they’ve known each other forever.

Those who doubt the power of pop music may want to take a hard listen to “Simple Things,” perhaps the quintessential example of Shaouy’s songwriting ability.  Defining himself as “a lover of humor Pythonese…a lover of chick peas Lebanese…a lover of love songs McCartney’s,” respect is rightly paid to the Fab Four‘s legacy.  In a selfish world that continually wants more, this song suggests (with unflinching belief) that the best things in life are free.  Guitarist Rob Gal plays double duty as producer, allowing Shaouy’s lyrics to play within a world of sonic euphoria.  “Simple Things” jumps out of the speakers with deliriously happy clapping cadences and background vocals that bounce from left to right.  “Leader” is another attention-grabber, one that asks soul-searching questions of self and of the listener in an attempt to awaken a greater purpose within us all.  At one point, Shaouy thoughtfully sings, “Why do I so easily give away my power so I may get along?”

“My Tribe” deals with the strength and security in numbers, its rhythmic percussion making it an immediate standout on the album.  It’s the kind of song that concertgoers can rally around, jumping in unison and singing along.  The disc closes in grand fashion with “One Night,” a vast expense of a tune that unfolds to reveal new layers around every turn.  Shaouy and Gal shine as sonic sculptors able to determine how much to add before the mix becomes unmanageable.  A string section here, a sprinkling of one-word phrasing there, and a steady build to the song’s apex completes the album’s journey.  Perhaps I Called I can be summed up by an utterance from the Greek chorus that pops up on this full-length: “Oh, the characters within…and the stories they tell.”  This is carefully crafted pop music, the type that can get stuck in your head and you won’t mind one bit.

Reviewed By Jason Randall Smith

Jason Randall Smith, Reviews Desmond Drive, I Called I

Desmond Drive’s debut album, I Called I is an 11-song alt-pop album with much musical sophistication. While references to Bruce Springsteen, Roy Orbison and even the Beatles abound, Desmond Drive manages to set themselves apart with intriguing monologues introducing each song and flawless musical accompaniment. A session musician who has been a part of several rock and pop bands, Bill Shaouy is the leader of the band, providing impeccable vocals throughout the disc.

The album starts out with a monologue: “The studio date was set/And the band was ready to record/To celebrate the glory of relationship/To witness the folly of control/To marvel at all creation/Rejoice!” In fact, much of I Called I has narrations introducing each song; however some more than others are a bit curious at times. While the monologues aren’t always needed, they do help break up the album. First track, “Two-Headed Beast” is the strongest track on the album. With a hint of Bruce Springsteen vocals, Shaouy leads the band well. “I’ve worn this skin for so long now/That’s all I thought I was/But love reflects what I don’t see/More than a mirror does” he sings. The piano accentuates his vocals well and while the music is incredibly strong, it never overpowers Shaouy’s vocals, which are the heart of the song.

Incredulously, “Poker Face” also reveals another rock icon – this time the infamous Roy Orbison. While Shaouy is crying over lost love the backing vocals seemingly take the listener back to 60s Doo-Wop with continuous “sha-la-la sha-la-la-oooh.”

Extremely versatile, much of the album recalls musicians of the past. However, despite the comparisons and strong musicianship some songs lack the mastership shown on previous tracks. One track in particular, “Simple Things,” sounds like what being in a psychedelic state would feel like with curious lyrics, “Me, I am a lover of humor pythonese/I am a lover of chick peas Lebanese/I am a lover of love songs McCarney’s/I am a lover of all the simple things they say are meant to be.” While I’m sure this wasn’t the intention, both the musical arrangement and accompanying lyrics grab the listener’s attention.

Regardless, I Called I has much to offer listeners. Whether one is looking for a ballad (“Your Name” has stellar organ accompaniment) or time travel (in addition to “Poker Face” “Goodbye” sounds like something the Beatles may have sung at some point in their career) one thing is certain, Desmond Drive’s debut will surly get stuck in your head.  

Reviewed By Annie Reuter

Annie Reuter, Reviews Desmond Drive, I Called I