'Overlooking The Obvious' is the latest five track E.P. from Connecticut based singer songwriter P.J. Pacifico; following hot on the heels of his last album, 'Surface'. With this E.P.,though, there is a departure from what has gone before. This time he's got a new producer, new studio, and new songwriting collaborators, and I think it shows in the confidence and maturity of his songs.
The opening track, 'Bend It Till It Breaks' which also features Garrison Starr, is a lovely country style pop song, with some excellent harmonies. The lyrics chart the break down of a relationship, with one half, desperately trying to hold on to the idea of what they had: - “ Here it comes, Just like the war before. Without warning, So it goes/ I'm still in love. I didn't make it this far to give up. I'm holding on if you won't let go.”
An excellent opening track, this sets the scene for the rest of the E.P. Track two, 'Just Like A Lover' is a keyboard driven anthemic folk/pop song, which gently washes over you. When you hear tracks like this, you can understand why P.J. has been compared, very favourably, to artists like James Taylor. The lyrics are all about a sailor, going off to sea again, and his thoughts and hopes: - “I went down to the corner for ten dollar smokes, I met an old woman who saw life as a joke/ She asked for a buck and a bottle of rum. I had just begun/ Tomorrow's the first of a hundred at sea, you never can tell what the water will bring/ But that doesn't matter to a sailor like me, who was born to weather the storm.”
There is a certain gritty realism in this song, especially when the character realises that we are all fated: - “ Alone at the bar with my last cigarette/ trying hard to remember and not to forget/ But sometimes I guess you just get what you get.”
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Track three, 'Walls' is an atmospheric pop ballad, guitar based and the only track on the E.P. where P.J. Is the sole writer. Once again, it is extremely catchy, with some good observational lyrics: - “ Fall for honesty. Bring back make believe/ One more and I'm gone. Scars are never wrong/ Your promise means nothing at all, When walls won't fall/ Time to walk away but to you it's okay, When walls won't fall.”
The fourth track on the E.P., the sublime country pop of 'This Is My Heart' is a stand out track, and one that is clearly aimed for chart success, co-written with Kit Karlson (from Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers), again the lyrics strike a chord: - “Coming hot out of the gate, and finishing up cold/ Something more to complicate. It starts to get old.Just like always staying down town, when the night comes undone/ I always had to stick around, looking for everyone.”
The E.P. closes with 'Let Go Or Be Dragged', which I thought a little bit downbeat to finish on, as the lyrics again deal with love and loss in a very direct way: - “If I could read a script of every word we said, there’d be some romance and a bit of emptiness/ As the final curtain fell, I guess it would show
Some things you fight for and some things you just let go.”
Overall, though this was a really enjoyable E.P. Mr. Pacifico will be touring the UK in July, so could really be worth a visit.
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