Anyone who has had the pleasure of listening to Dashboard Confessional even just once before knows their reputation for depressing music is justifiable. Anyone who has had the pleasure of listening to them more than once, however, knows this assessment doesn't begin to do justice to the quality of their music. Though a good portion of their songs have sad connotations and themes relating mostly to the loss of love, this reputation does not say anything for the enormous capacity for empathy their music possesses.
Dating back as far as Swiss Army Romance, released in 2000, Dashboard Confessional has created songs that seem to reach out to even the most average listener and say "It's OK; I get it; I know." Through a consistent dedication to their own unique sound, Dashboard has managed to produce CDs that not only reach out to their listeners, but provide high quality music.
The Shade of Poison Trees is no exception to the empathetic nature and quality of Confessionals's music. It opens with a guitar intro to "Where There's Gold..." that sounds vaguely like the beginning of a folk song, but with Chris Carraba's voice comes the familiarity of home or a best friend. Not only do the lyrics reach out to those who have been used and those who feel they have lost their dreams, there is also a dry-humored twist in the hook at the end that recalls Kanye West's "Gold Digger."
Their understanding nature, like someone caring who leaps to your defense,makes its strongest appearance in the second song, "Thick as Thieves." The track begins with the reassurances and promises of help and comfort: "Would it kill you to breathe easy / only seventeen miles lay between you and me / I could make it if I had to." The lyrics are accompanied by a lilting rhythm and a soothing melody. Yet even the difficult nature of calming down in trying situations is acknowledged by Carraba telling you to "just keep your mouth shut / keep your guard up / I swear I'll make it right."
Those looking for Dashboard Confessional's typical soulful expressions of loss and deceit need look no farther than the album's titular song, "The Shade of Poison Trees." For the confusion and pain on both sides surrounding the ending of relationships, check out "Clean Breaks," and for the bitterness of societal divisions and "slumming," track 10 "Matters of Blood and Connection" is the place to go.
The song "Rush" provides something new. What would by any other band be bubblegum, toothache pop music, through Dashboard's unique sound and Carraba's pleading voice becomes a hopeful and meaningful song. Though there is certainly something to be said for the consistency of Dashboard Confessional's empathetic lyrics, not nearly enough is said about the melodies behind them. While the music blends well with the lyrics, definitely serving as an accompaniment, the melodies have their own unique quality. Guitar sections draw you in before the singing begins and stick with you long after. The melodies contribute immeasurably to the tone and mood of the songs, lending a harried and apprehensive sound to tracks like "Watch Out for the Mines."
For newcomers to the Dashboard scene, this CD will certainly help them get better acquainted with what could become a consistent, "always here for you" band.
It's not all perfect, though. At times it seems like Chris Carraba's voice just shouldn't go that high, and songs such as "Little Bombs" are slightly repetitive. But my biggest complaint with The Shade of Poison Trees is that it is too short. With only one song that exceeds three minutes, it seems as though this visit with a friend is over just a little too soon.
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