Damien Cheecham [Our Pick]

Artist—Damien Cheecham
Song—It's Just a Dream
Album—Damien Cheecham (2010)
Label—Independent

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! Perhaps Damien Cheecham approaches his music writing with this philosophy as his self-titled album release is chock full of songs that all work just fine and make for enjoyable listening from beginning to end. Some music styles never die in Indian Country and the old classic rock music approach works for Damien Cheecham. One can only hope this kind of music is on the upswing in popularity again because musically it feels like home. The standard band instrumentation around solid guitar riffs sets the ground work for his songs that will instantly feel familiar. Not that you’ve probably heard his music played on mainstream radio in constant rotation (though there’s no reason a station couldn’t or shouldn’t do so) as it’s a music style we are instantly comfortable with if you grew up listening to classic Canadian rock music from the late 70’s and early 80’s.

“Adolescent Man” is one such song that begs you to remember another song you know is on the tip of your tongue, especially when Damien sings the last line of the chorus, “Kick it loose, while you still got a chance”.

Fortunately most music playback devices will let you play this one over and over and maybe the song it reminds you of will come to you. But at this point, I only hear Damien’s song playing back in my memory now.
Make no mistake; Damien can crank out a crowd swaying, bic lighter torch ballad that moves you to want to sing along as well as any other show stopping songs, such as on the cut “It’s Just A Dream”.  The album does not get mundane or repetitive in the least as there is a lot of variety in songs melody. Each song has its own identity and they all fit together as well as any collection of songs can. Come to think of it, I might just hit the “repeat play” on my cd player and let her go for a few spins it’s that enjoyable.