This could go one of two ways, depending. The ten tracks on 'Anywhere Out of the World' are divided into two sets: 'Daylight Songs' and 'Moonlight Songs', supposedly as an indicator of when best to listen to the songs. 'In other words,' they say, 'a crepuscular album convenient to the wanderings of the imagination.' This would suggest to me that Colorblind are either an eloquent and literate band who know exactly what they're about, or are otherwise pretentious tossers. While it's a subjective call, objectively speaking it all comes down to whether or not 'Anywhere Out of the World' is any good or not.
I always maintain that the first track on any album has to be the one that really grabs the listener's attention, one way or another, and ideally gives a hint of what's to come during the remainder of the album. The imaginatively-titled 'Hello' really doesn't leap out, but then, it's not terrible and is mildly intriguing. Some nice guitar detail is marred rather by a lot of chiming glockenspiel and some rather awkward lyrics ('I miss your skin / It's sad your brain is sick', for example).
'Blue Sky' is rhythmically solid and wistful in tone, but it's hard to know what to make of lines like 'Pimp my ride, pimp my wife / And pimp her breasts / Wash my brain I'm your slave'. Still, there is a pretty stonking, if slightly incongruous guitar break that leaps in somewhat unexpectedly toward the end.
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As the album progresses, it becomes increasingly tedious. Any of the tracks individually are ok, if a little unremarkable, but as a collection, it's just too much of a muchness. 'My Glory' is a subtly understated electro-acoustic number that's just on the wrong side of weak emo-indie to be entirely palatable: not quite Owl City, but inching into that kind of wet territory.
Vito's vocals frequently stray into falsetto at the end of lines, and while it's by no means an offensive style, its prominence on 'Slow' wouldn't be nearly as annoying if it hadn't been used abundantly during the course of the preceding seven tracks. It's a pity, because he does have an interesting tone when he pitches in the baritone range.
It's quite apparent that Colorblind have no shortage of ideas, or that they're willing to experiment with sound manipulations. Unfortunately, it's all a bit muted, subdued by a slick production, and the effect is frequently on the twee side, as on 'Coldroom.'
Ultimately, it doesn't really float my boat, although it's not nearly as pretentious or tossy as it might have been, which is a plus point.
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