Album Review: Livingstone Daisies - Don't Know What Happiness Is

Clearly influenced by some great troubadours of years gone by, such as (at a guess) The Grateful Dead, The Beatles and Tom Petty, Livingstone Daisies have produced a nice little album here. The majority of the tracks are somewhere between three and five minutes long, keeping with the classic pop/rock band style that these guys are projecting.

As far as songwriting is concerned, Livingstone Daisies employ totally classic techniques. Staying true to their heritage, this tight-knit group keep it simple with rhythms and chord structures in a clever and interesting way. In sticking to what he knows, frontman and songwriter Van Walker has produced eight solid tracks, strong in their conviction and well rounded. The only drawback of the songs on this album is that after track three or four they start to sound the same. By the time track seven begins playing, it feels like it's time to listen to something else. But all of a sudden, the album then changes tack completely; church organs, guitar effects and a whole heap of reverb give the final song, I Still Believe In You, a totally different sound. So different, in fact, that this seven-minute prog rock ballad sounds like it belongs on a different album altogether. Even though the track is an incredibly powerful finish to the record, that change in direction comes a little too late. If the Daises bridged the gap between these two sounds that they have here, perhaps altering some song structures and messing with the production, this album would be much more consistent, yet diverse and with some pretty tasty substance to boot.

On the Daisies Bandcamp site, this album is available in digital format, as well as on CD and a limited edition vinyl release. It's worthwhile considering the extra $10 for the latter, if you have a turntable. These classic, loveable tunes are the sort that would pair very well with the nice warm crackle of a needle against that wax.