Album Title
Darren Hayes
Artist Icon This Delicate Thing We've Made (2007)
heart off icon (0 users)
Last IconTransparent icon Next icon

Data Complete
percentage bar 70%

Total Rating

Star Icon (3 users)

Back Cover
Transparent Block

CD Art
CDart Artwork

3D Case
Album 3D Case

3D Thumb
Album 3D Thumb

3D Flat
Album 3D Flat

3D Face
Album 3D Face

3D Spine
Transparent Icon

First Released

Calendar Icon 2007

Genre

Genre Icon Pop

Mood

Mood Icon Happy

Style

Style Icon Rock/Pop

Theme

Theme Icon ---

Tempo

Speed Icon Medium

Release Format

Release Format Icon Album

Record Label Release

Speed Icon

World Sales Figure

Sales Icon 0 copies

Album Description
Available in:
Previously the forte of prog rockers, hair metallers, and hip-hop MCs, the idea of the double album has recently been embraced by the pop world, with Christina Aguilera (Back to Basics), Beyoncé (I Am...Sasha Fierce), and even Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates (Go Your Own Way), unable to restrict their creative flow to just one disc. Following his split with Columbia Records after ten years and 25 million sales together, former Savage Garden frontman Darren Hayes has used his new-found freedom to become the latest unlikely artist to boldly attempt the ambitious concept with his third solo album, This Delicate Thing We've Made. Clocking in at a near-two-hour running time, Hayes' first release through his own Powdered Sugar label could quite easily have become an exercise in self-indulgence, but luckily, he has plenty to offer both sonically and lyrically. Written during the period of his civil partnership with his animator/music video director husband, and his subsequent public coming out announcement, the majority of its 25 tracks eschew the dark and tortured themes of predecessor The Tension & the Spark in favor of a more optimistic approach which revels in his newly discovered happiness, particularly on the likes of "Who Would Have Thought?" a brooding trip-hop-inspired co-write with Guy Chambers, which comes complete with a chiming wedding bell middle-eight; the shimmering Enya-esque choral-led "The Only One," and the joyous new wave pop of lead single "On the Verge of Something Wonderful." Not that Hayes has become averse to addressing more heavy-handed issues, either, as evident on the politically charged, robotic synth-funk of "Bombs Up in My Face," the new age waltz of "Neverland," which tackles the subject of domestic violence, and the campfire sing-along of "The Great Big Disconnect" which covers everything from weapons of mass destruction to AIDS in Africa. The shimmering electro-pop that he so convincingly pulled off on his sophomore album remains the album's prevalent sound, the highlights of which are the Paul Van Dyk-inspired, six-minute trance-lite epic "Casey," the Giorgio Moroder-esque bubbling synth pop of "Step Into the Light," and the Middle Eastern-flavored "A Conversation with God." But elsewhere, Hayes takes full advantage of the opportunity to showcase his more adventurous side, shifting from Prince-inspired falsetto funk ("Me, Myself and I") to Scissor Sisters-style glam rock ("Lucky Town") to melancholic country-pop ("Maybe") to a cappella gospel ("Walk Away"), all with consummate ease. Of course, the album's sprawling nature means that it might be a bit of a slog for anyone other than hardcore fans, while the schmaltzy tendencies of Savage Garden unfortunately rear their head on the slushy and dreary acoustic ballads "I Just Want You to Love Me," "A Hundred Challenging Things a Boy Can Do," and "Words." But strip away these misguided ventures into lounge territory and you're left with an inventive, seductive, and slightly eccentric record which only furthers Hayes' surprising reinvention as one of pop's most unpredictable mavericks.
wiki icon


User Album Review
None...


External Album Reviews
None...



User Comments
seperator
No comments yet...
seperator

Status
Locked icon unlocked

Rank:

External Links
MusicBrainz Large icontransparent block Amazon Large icontransparent block Metacritic Large Icon