Tim Robbins has a lot of nerve. But before going into that, let me explain an unwritten rule of music industry success. The best path, if you are a new act in the world of music is to pick an obscure, under-appreciated and second string band from the ‘60s/’70s/’80s and copy them. People will be delighted with your quirky record collection, your good taste, the fact you have easily surpassed your (let’s face it) mediocre heroes, and that modern dentistry and nutrition has enabled you to be better looking. No-one will blame you. On the other hand, pick obvious genius to emulate (The Beatles, The Pixies, The Rolling Stones) and you generally get critically shat on from a great height.
Possibly because Tim Robbins is a Hollywood actor, and actors tends to earn their Oscars by emulating great historical figures, Robbins has ignored this rule and has unselfconsciously conjured up the following musicians on his debut recording: Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, Nick Cave and Neil Young. Now, Robbins would probably argue that he’s just dipping into the same pool of bluesy folk ‘n’ country for inspiration and he does actually manage to conjure up the spirits of these greats (like Obi-Wan, Yoda and Anakin Skywalker at the end of Return of the Jedi) without actually imitating them. In fact, the melodies are generally lovely, the lyrics well crafted, and his whispery but authoritative voice sits rather well alongside producer Hal Wilner’s twinkly piano, acoustic guitar and one oddity per song (affected guitar/raspy slide/theremin) arrangements. Worth hearing.
Key Track: ‘Dreams’