The Things You Never Say
© Copyright-Andy Thornton
(5060001390000)
Record Label: Dubious Recordings
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'Andy Thornton is a man of integrity and depth, his music is an extension of that and I like it.' - Martyn Joseph
Andy Thornton has been writing songs since the day he first picked up a guitar at age 14. His instinct for telling his story in song is only equalled by his passion to get beneath the surface of everyday life and unveil the secrets of the human heart: whether it be anger, frustration, tenderness, wild love or hope of justice.
"The Things You Never Say" the first single to be lifted from the album of the same name, this story goes to its next stage. Thornton's sound is a distinct crossover blend. In this latest offering references are as varied as Costello, Van Morrison, Radiohead and the Blue Nile.
Andy's history goes back to the mid-80s when his band Big Sur emerged out of the high profile Glasgow music scene of the time. Touring with Deacon Blue in '88 followed the release of their single 'Please Stay', which reached the lofty heights of 'record of the week' in Record Mirror. Andy was signed as a songwriter to Chrysalis Music the following year.
Ten years and 3 releases later Andy prefers to unveil the trail of his life with more intimacy than most commercial environments allow. This results in radio-friendly songs that dig deeper into human experience than many radio stations offer. This territory appeals to the adult listener whose taste is firmly in rock and pop but who demands a sophistication of music and lyric to satisfy the educated taste.
"I've got to the point where songs just seem to write themselves in me!" says Thornton, "about half of the album songs came out of my head nearly finished. One of them was completely written before I ever got to hear it! I was on holiday and the idea, chords, melody and all, came back with me, written down and then I finally got hold of my guitar again and heard it. I seem to write better by being my own audience and listening than by trying to make songs happen."
Recently Andy has appeared at The Porter Bar in Bath, The Pleasance Cabaret Bar in Edinburgh and Sloanes in Glasgow. Further dates will be confirmed.
'The Things You Never Say' is a testimony to many years of listening! Songs that seemed to speak to Thornton first are nurtured and crafted into individual offerings of clear originality.
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author: The Phantom Tollbooth
With a voice that is reedy in a way similar to Lies Damned Lies's Charlie Irvine, Thornton has assembled a collection of songs which shows a good deal of versatility.
The obvious "hit" here is the third track, "She Won't Talk to Me," a catchy electric pop-song about a wall of silence following a declaration of love. While this is one of the better songs of its type, it's the more reflective numbers which gradually grow on the careful listener. "Heartbeat In Everything" is appropriately atmospheric, with Dave Lynch's tactful programming and arrangement meshing with Iain Archer's electric guitar to provide mesmerising verses and choruses which have an earthy, feel to them summoning a sense of viewing the cosmos from a distance and seeing its beauty.
The song itself is an attempt to understand a God who is both the wielder of cosmic power and active and present within our lives: Heartbeat in everything You make the stars and the atoms spin And in between it all you bring our love alive Sunflare splitting the night You bring the joy and the pain to light And in the end of it all only the best survives.
Thornton is a fine lyricist. He is able to write tales of forlorn love which will resonate with the vast majority of listeners, while also exploring deeper, more mysterious themes in a poetic way. Above all, the songs here are holistic, showing the combined emotional and intellectual explorations of both the commonplace and the absolute.
An album which brings together diverse elements, resulting in a refined and earthy groove. The album has a melancholic edge to it, for which there is an apology in the album sleeve, but it is that which gives it a strong sense of mood and atmosphere. It may have been possible to make the flow slightly more consistent, and a couple of the songs don't have either the immediacy of "She Won't Talk to Me" or the more layered pull of some of the other offerings, but this is another fine effort.
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