All Cylinders
All Cylinders is the newest full-length record from Canadian musician, singer, and producer Yves Jarvis. As you may recall previously, this release was preceded by a short EP, Decision Tree, which served as a teaser for several of the tracks on the full release. Expanding the original 4 tracks from Decision Tree, All Cylinders spans 11 tracks total.
Kicking off the full project comes the opening track, “With a Grain.” This track does a really good job of setting the tone for the instrumentation in succeeding tracks. There’s quite a bit of variety present here with twinkling keys, synths, and electronic drums evolving into the indie rock-esque electric and bass guitars later in the track. While there were some vocals present, this track feels more of an instrumental show of force with Jarvis giving a taste of what’s to come.
“Gold Filigree” follows the opener, as featured on my review of the Decision Tree EP. Following that comes “One Gripe.” I find this track very infectious with its themes of playful longing and desire for more intimate connection combined with some stellar percussion and riffs. The percussion and basslines give the track a very funky feel which works oddly well with the electric guitar riffs. Speaking of which, the guitar solo about 2/3 through the track was incredibly well executed. It felt both smooth and powerful giving the whole track a major energy boost.
“Decision Tree” follows (check out my previous review for thoughts on that), which is succeeded by “I’ve Been Mean.” I feel conflicted regarding this track. While there are some interesting instrumental choices Jarvis makes, I can’t help but feel like the constant changes and layering of different effects and sounds is fighting for my attention. I also wasn’t a big fan of the vocal distortions, as Jarvis’s vocals are one of his biggest strong suits. Thematically the track seemed a bit wandering also. While it isn’t an unbearable listen, it’s not one of my favorites thus far.
“I’m Your Boy” follows next on the track list. This marks one of the more interesting tracks thematically. Jarvis speaks directly to his mother, thanking her for always supporting him while committing her own self-improvement. While I do enjoy this track, I do wish there were a bit more tenderness or sentimentality conveyed instrumentally. Jarvis’s mother is clearly an important figure in his life (especially considering his inspiration for his stage name was the combination of his middle name and his mother’s maiden name), but that doesn’t feel super well conveyed by the instrumental here. While this may have been a stylistic choice, it just didn’t have as much impact on me personally.
Featuring one the shortest track lengths on the record, “Warp and Woof” comes next. Filled with double entendres, the track frequently plays off the title (an expression meaning the foundation of something) chronicling the beginning of a relationship from a chance encounter. I really enjoyed the latter half of the track. There’s a notable emphasis placed on the vocals as the instrumental fades into the soft background, which I found captivating. It really highlights Jarvis’s vocals in this section (which sounded incredible, personally).
“All Cylinders,” “The Knife in Me,” and a brief interlude “Patina” all proceed, bringing us to the final track on the record, “Luck’s Last Luster.” This track brings a sweet conclusion to the record, with Jarvis finding comfort from everyday struggles in a significant other. The typical electric guitar from previous tracks is instead replaced by a softer acoustic here, which gives the track a more homely and soft feel. While it did feel a bit short, I thought this track was a nice closer to the project.
Having listened to the full project, there’s a bit more context for some of the earlier-released EP tracks and I think I’m better able to gauge the strengths of this project overall. As I mentioned previously, the strengths of this project lie in Jarvis’s wide array of sounds and instrumentation. There’s quite a bit of interesting layering that occurs on many tracks Combined with Jarvis’s beautiful vocals, it makes for a really fun listen. Personally, I wasn’t as impressed by the other 7 tracks compared to the four released in the Decision Tree EP. The EP tracks just seemed to be the clear “hits” or frontrunners of the record, which felt a bit disappointing, as the other tracks didn’t quite make the same impression. While I didn’t hate the record, for a casual or new listener I’m more likely to recommend the EP over the full LP.
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