The first thing you’ll notice about Andy Jackson’s Signal To Noise is that it’s step into Pink Floydian soundscapes. Which isn’t a surprise when you consider that Jackson worked as an engineer and co-producer for the band, as well as on solo projects by David Gilmour and Roger Waters. His association with Floyd garnered two Grammy Nominations. One of the first records he engineered was the Boomtown Rats’ “I Don’t Like Mondays.” So, as far as manicuring sound, Jackson is at the top of his field. Signal To Noise is Jackson’s fourth album for creating sound as a musician.
Bleeping keys and slide guitar slip under the double-harmony vocal of opener “The Boy in the Forest” (we will hear lots of slide throughout this record). The ‘boy’ of the title makes his way through ardent forest lyric descriptions and there is a middle section of bass and flight of guitar noodling seemingly lifted from “Echoes.” “One More Push” has a ‘pushing’ heavy chorus of low vocals and a consistent tribal beat. I especially like Jackson’s drumming (he plays all the instruments) on this tune about Sisyphean realities.
“Herman at the Fountain” is built on a halting snare roll, acoustic guitar with strings behind it, coupled with odd tickles of sound, akin to whale song. Again slide guitar is front and center with Jackson’s lowest vocal yet, he’s mostly talking his way through. This is quite the dramatic turn with equally low strings, plucked guitar, affected scary spoken words, but in the middle of all the mix we do get a nice light moment of melody, where there is a distinctive simple slide lead that lifts the whole concoction from just a slow snapping acoustic workout. The song rolls to an end in a steady plucking mixed with that single recognizable slide melody.
“It All Came Crashing Down” is just too Roger Waters for words. It’s one thing to be influenced or even accidentally sound like someone, but here Jackson sounds as if he is he’s lifting directly from The Wall, in a tune built round weird metallic spikes under a jangly acoustic with perfectly imitated Water’s inflection.
The last tune “Brownian Motion” fares better, there is a solid bass and drum plod, funky guitar and some deep slashing moments with low scary chants and finally a judicious use of slide. The chorus is catchy with an ascending bass line and when Jackson finally manages a slide lead, it is probably his best on the album, which is filled to the brim with slide. The lyric is a bit esoteric, more thrown-around single word and phrases about futility, but it fits the overall vibe of what is finishes off Andy Jackson’s Signal To Noise.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
