No Straight Lines

Bill Gable

Independent release, 2015

http://billgablemusic.com

REVIEW BY: Tom Haugen

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 10/23/2015

Singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and engineer Bill Gable started making Straight Lines in 2004, piecing together songs in various countries in Europe while absorbing the different cultures along the way. Though Gable was born and raised in the Midwest, his classical training in piano and cello and extensive travels have brought him a worldly mashing of jazz, pop, flamenco and Mediterranean influences, which gives these sophisticated songs a very unique feeling from a primarily soft angle. my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

"A Million Miles Away" begins with calm guitars and Gable's smooth but robust voice, before percussive sounds with a world music influence and jumping keys come into the equation. At times, it seems like multiple songs are going at once, but they collide in a graceful, unexpected manner. "I Threw Your Heart" follows and continues with elegant keys and an island breeze, and "Wherever You Lose It" is romantic and fragile, ideal for a candlelit dinner. "Sustenance" continues the romantic feeling with a soothing horn solo, while "Came So Close" focuses on precise guitar work with plenty of backing vocals.

Near the end, things get musically and lyrically somber with the heartbreaking "Road To Pain," where twinkling keys meet true but devastating storytelling, and the aching, sad strings of "End Of The Day" that tug on the heartstrings ever so gently. The disc closes out on "All Are One," one of the fullest songs with over a dozen instruments and many voices, as the album culminates in a tune of hope and truth that most of the world could benefit from.

Gable ends the ever so mature album with the words “You believe what you believe / But we have got to live together / All are one.” In a time with so much strife worldwide, Gable's words are a simple but true sentiment we should all take to heart.

Rating: B+

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