Go Getter 2

This month sees the great Gary Usher become the latest maestro to be honoured in our series of collections devoted to record producers. Usher grew up as an avid radio listener and record collector, and soon realised that he wanted to forge a career in music. After a handful of stabs as a recording artist, he settled into writing and arranging for various West Coast companies. Early in the 60s, as he was given more responsibility in recording studios, he built up a crack team of talented musical buddies who he used on many of his sessions. This culminated in the string of singles and albums that rode the surf, drag and hot rod craze. As well as producing, he wrote, arranged and sang on many of these releases.

Patrick Droney's sophomore album Subtitles For Feelings is an original emotion picture. A child of the dedication line and VHS era, Droney survives on sentimentality. It hits him every time he hears Delilah on late-night radio or passes by the Blockbuster sign next to the bodega on his corner. Through Droney's lens, the terms "album" and "movie" are simply interchangeable. The 30-year-old Brooklyn-based artist/producer/guitar sensation proudly presents this new soundtrack as a deepening of his timeless and cinematic pop sound, led by two singles released thus far. The electric "Go Getter" sets the tone for the project with it's enigmatic lyric, "More than anything, I wanna know / What's time and where does it go?" while the 80s-tinged pulse of "Caroline" resurrects Eddie and the Cruisers right into 2023.

Like wine, music improves with age. And Conor O’Brien’s matures well. From the Malahide coast, where the Irishman composed his first three albums on his farm, to the hubbub of Dublin, the villager has changed his scene. Much like his album. After Becoming a Jackal, Awayland and Darling Arythmetic, three soft pop-folk albums, the songwriter with ice-cube eyes has released The Art Of Pretenting To Swim. O’Brien has read the Pro Tools manual for a shorter album length (44 minutes) and much more elaborate detail.