Color Theory, the solo project of Brian Hazard, may be a lot more known to most of you than you'd guess. The opening track "Ponytail Girl" has been one of the most downloaded Depeche Mode 'demos' on Napster. Yes, you read it right, the track had been placed on the net as being a demo by Martin Lee Gore, the Depeche Mode songwriter. And to be honest, it doesn't surprise me, because what we hear on this already 4th album of this California based band, is really close to what you'd expect from Martin Lee Gore. The vocals, the music, it does remind me a lot of the demos and solo material Martin Gore has produced over the years delivering the same attractive moody vocals and very melancholic texts and remembers a lot of what a Vinci Principle, a Belgian one-man-project, released in the past. The production is very synthpoppy like, but it has not the annoying overexposure of bleeps that even Erasure is getting sick of. A very attractive release that should please every Martin Gore fanatic. Just to let you know, this is the most played record at my place apart from Depeche Mode's "Exciter". My favourite tracks on this disc are "Wishing I had an umbrella", "Ponytail Girl", "So many ways", "Fade so fast", the list is endless. Also notice that this 15-track CD includes a Cosmicity release of "Now I know". This release can be obtained via A Different Drum or via Color Theory directly at www.colortheory.com.

Color Theory is light and cheerful synthpop to listen to those shiny Sunday mornings. Its sole-member, Brian Hazard, sings with a breathy charming voice that is not without remembering Depeche Mode's Martin L. Gore, but he's by no means imitating him. The opener, "Ponytail Girl" followed by "So Many Ways" are both excellent archetypal Color Theory's songs. Lush synths with bubbling electronics and classic electro-pop hooks complimented by Hazard's pleasant voice, leaving a cute little smile on our lips. Life's Fairytale has its surprising, more upbeat times with songs like "Fade So Fast" and "I Felt the Pain". The late, beginning with a melancholic piano part, suddenly moves into a sweeping synthpop track highlighted by gorgeous female backvocals against soaring electronic washes; the album's most memorable moment. Found at the end of the album, four artists have contributed with remixes. Though Color Theory's sound isn't that far from its own, Cosmicity has made "Now I Know" its own; a smooth and catchy synthetic pop ballad. "Long Distance Martyr" remixed by Jealous of Frank is a bit different, taking a well-done warm bossa-nova flourished direction while Paul Rijnders of Anything Box has revamped "Stare Out the Window" into a brilliant groovy acid-jazz track. Closing is Fidgital with a remix of "For Good", a fairly good techno interpretation infused by some tribal elements that can easily lose its listener with its unnecessary length. Fans of synthpop a la European and ballads alike will find in Life's Fairytale an album with much to offer. This is Color Theory's fourth album and obviously a great demonstration of synthpop with a sweet romantic backdrop without falling into tedious lines and over-exploited clichés.

The first time I listened to Life’s Fairytale, the new album from Color Theory (the one-man poptronica band of California singer-songwriter Brian Hazard), I was driving through the rough side of town with my heavily-tattooed punk rocker friend. After ten minutes of delicate, hummingbird melodies and lines like “I’m still here, avoiding the puddles, wishing I had an umbrella” delivered in Hazard’s high tenor, my friend ordered me to shut it off. The second time I listened to Life’s Fairytale, I was on my way to a club where a different friend of mine was spinning hip-hop. Again, after roughly three songs’ worth of gentle ambient textures and silky piano chords without a single “boom-boom-thwack” drum loop, I ejected the disc and replaced it with Mos Def. However, the third time I listened to Life’s Fairytale, I was sitting at home on a rainy day, watching the drops roll down the windows. Suddenly, everything clicked. The saccharine vocals, warm synthesizers, and rolling piano parts pooled around my ears, quickly seeping into my brain. I sat hypnotized through the opening track, “Ponytail Girl” as Hazard’s vocoded voice rattled off a prosaic account of an anonymous woman’s activities as she commutes home from work, then gets ready for a night out. All the minutiae (“Talk radio to fill her head / until the exit’s missed again…“) pile up until her preparations seem a monumental undertaking. By the time Hazard shifts to the role of the man the protagonist’s blind date, and declares that all her thought and effort “...does nothing for me”, the otherwise banal tale has morphed into a full-blown tragedy. A relatively short album beefed up with some excellent remixes of older Color Theory tracks by modern synthpop stalwarts including Cosmicity and Anything Box, among others, Life’s Fairytale contains many fine moments. The harp-like intro to “So Many Ways” deserves to be reworked into a 20-minute ambient remix, while the one-word chorus of “Cheerleader” compels you to chant along. “Everything I Thought I Had To Be” is a thrilling disco symphony that plays like a Pet Shop Boys remix of a Ben Folds Five song, and the Jealous of Frank remix of “Long Distance Martyr” is one of the most original drum n’ bass cuts I’ve heard in years. Color Theory doesn’t make the kind of music you can mosh to, and even when he employs club beats, the results are still more suitable for easy-chair listening than shaking one’s behind to on the dancefloor. But those who like don’t mind a little coffeehouse singer/songwriter schmaltz with their poptronica should definitely check it out. (8.5/10)

Yes, this CD does include several songs that were also on the Perfect For Awhile promo cd. Perhaps Brian explained it best... "They've all gotten a facelift (a couple had major surgery), so those old tracks should now be considered demos." And he's right! Though in some of the tracks, it's a little harder to hear the changes, you'll find the differences eventually. This album is a first for Color Theory, in that it's for the most part all electronic, with a minimum of acoustic piano in the songs. Which, to be honest, I've grown to really like. Not as much as the hybrid piano/electronic sound, but I've grown to like it a lot in and of itself. Some of these songs are actually from the 'Bad Song Of The Week' feature on Color Theory's webpage, and I really loved hearing more fleshed-out versions of many of those songs. Some of my favorite BSotW's such as "Wishing I Had An Umbrella", "So Many Ways", and "End Of The Night" really shine here in a more polished (yet all-electronic) form. Most of the tracks from Perfect For Awhile are similar enough to the versions on that release to not significantly shift my opinion of the songs, other than liking them even more. The one song that was also on that release that I want to make additional comments on is "Cheerleader". After hearing this song for a while, and then seeing snippets of the movie Bring It On, I must say it's the type song I can easily seeing a cheerleading routine being done to. That would be extremely funny, to see a group of cheerleaders performing to a song that undercuts a lot of the mindset that's implied to most cheerleaders. And I still say that Brian's cover of "I Felt The Pain" is the best cover version I've ever heard of any song... Now on to the remixes... The remix of "Outside Girl" was done by Brian, and it was featured on a remix compilation from Germany, I believe. It's a dance remake of the song, in a nutshell. And while it's enjoyable, it loses some of the emotion of the original song in the translation, I think. Next is a remix of "Now I Know", by Cosmicity. To be honest, Mark didn't have much to work with here, with the original being only piano and vocals. However, he's transformed the song into a synthpop masterpiece, while retaining excellently the feeling of restrained longing the original song conveyed. I could put this one on repeat for hours on end and never get tired of it... "Lost Distance Martyr" is remixed by Steve Sholtes, who has done a lot of work with Cosmicity, and also has his own project, Jealous Of Frank. It's a Drum and Bass treatment of the song, but it really works well. The booming deep bass line really helps the gloominess of the song come through. I like it! The next mix, by Paul R of Anything Box, is actually a rather trance-oriented take on the track. However, the vocal samples and snippets are used to perfect effect, and I really like the pitch-shifting effect used on the vocals. I always said Brian had amazing range vocally, but I never knew he could go that high. :-D Keith Gilliard faces a difficult task as he closes out the remixes and the album. Not only is he closing out the album, but he's remixing one of my all-time favorite Color Theory songs, "For Good". It ranges from Drum and Bass, to Trancey, and back to D&B. And although it's a totally different vibe from the original, emotion-laden ballad, it works! I like it! Simply put, if you're a Color Theory fan, and missed out on the promo album Perfect For Awhile, you must have this. And if you're a synthpop fan, who's heard some CTheory material before, and been intrigued, this album is for you. I really can't find a reason for someone to not buy this cd. Highly recommended!!!