Album Review: "Split" by Michael Wayne

One of the things I love about being a blogger is that you get to read about a bunch of different people.  And sometimes, if you're lucky, you get to write about them too!  You see a lot of stuff on the Internet; and sometimes, glory is born out of nothing.  Music labels have big money and big radio, but here in the blogosphere we're all kinda on equal ground.  And here at PCB, I try to help out rising artists in any way I can!  So here's my look at Split, a new music release from Michael Wayne!

When I started to play Split, a couple of thoughts were rolling through my mind.  One of them being, "Hey, what ever happened to the MIDI?  Can we still use those files?  Are we going to see albums of the future be released on MIDI like the retro vinyl records of today??"  I can't lie, the songs on this album somehow belong in a computer game; perhaps an adventure game?  Something "point and click...?"  Sierra On-Line is severely missing out on a gold mine here!

My other thought concerned the album title: why Split?  What's splitting?  Personalities?  Universes?  Bananas?  Music is subjective, and everyone is going to interpret sounds differently; here's my take: the "split" is between the real and the ethereal.  It sounds heavy, but hear me out...

When listening through the different tunes here, I saw a person going on a journey; the keyboard has a sense of discovery and wonder.  Maybe a "dreamquest"?  The use of different musical tones has a certain emotion to it, which I'm sure is what motivates most artists to produce music in the first place.  Is there a story to tell?  Without lyrics [with the exception of the Civil Defense Authority], Split allows the listeners to imagine what's going on during each track.  And sometimes the track titles tend to reveal chapters: like Left Along to Wander leads to Split leads to One Was Now Two...

Maybe I associate these songs with the computer adventure game because they have an ethereal sound that welcomes exploration.  Are you a prince trying to find a princess?  Or maybe you're just a regular guy reading a book (which Split is perfect for!), that itself is an adventure.  A rainy car ride, perhaps?  I wouldn't call it jazz or new age; just easy listening to cool down to.  To relax and take in whatever chill moments happen.

I enjoyed Split, and I would suggest a listen if you get the chance.  Easy listening is called that for a reason!  The great use of keyboard and allowing the listener to interpret each song's story gives Split the advantage.  And the change in tone during the Bonus Track also gives some allusion to a sequel; perhaps something awful has awoken the main character from their journey...!  Keep up with artist Michael Wayne to find out!!

Split can be found on Bandcamp, iTunes and Amazon!  Download it today!

My final rating of Split (2014):

8 out of 10 Dreamquests!