OK, about Brain Cells...somebody smart once said that writing about music is like dancing about architecture. Right anytime, and more than right when it's a CD like Brain Cells, but what the hell, I'll do my best. Bob Merrigan's a guy who paints with sound in much the way Deb, his wife and partner, paints with colors and sculpts with...actually, with just about anything she takes a fancy to using in creating her unique and striking artwork. (Visit Bob's Web site and you'll see what I mean.) And Bob's like that, too. He's one of those people who finds musical sounds in all sorts of places. First, you need to understand that Brain Cells isn't "folk" or "rock" or "contemporary acoustic" or any of that. In fact, try to forget all that stuff...this is simply sonic art that exists to surprise you and start you thinking. From the wailing horn on the title track to the unsettling message of "Bomb...", Bob's lyrical and very personal music will weave itself into your night thoughts, remind you of a few old friends you haven't seen in a while, and make you smile unexpectedly in inappropriate situations. Bob is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, but he's far more interested in assembling and presenting sonic canvases than he is in showing you his chops. He's capable of some very fine playing (check out "Uke 532," --yeah, that's what it is, a ukulele) but the chops are beside the point. The world is full of good players, but there's a definite shortage of people who can get you humming a simple, affectionate and obviously deeply felt love song like Bob's "My Best Friend." Bob is a fine singer, too, as "Being Present" so nicely demonstrates, but his voice isn't why that song will keep popping into your head at the damnedest moments. Bob wrote all the songs on this CD, sings them all, and presents them with compact, tasteful instrumental accompaniments that fit each one just about perfectly. They're all honest, with no fluff. Some of them are playful, some are touching, and some will bother the hell of you. And those are things that music is supposed to do. So stop making me dance about architecture, okay? Go listen to Bob's CD.

Brilliant, unique, heart breaking, poignant. Songs about love and life that reach deeply into the soul. Always entertaining, this CD is in a class of his own