p-ears-on acoustic

“For a complete (we think) listing of reviews google Andrew Pearson Third International. The following are some excerpts”

“Artist: The Third International Album: Beautiful Accident Review by Nick DeRiso     This is a different kind of blues record, one with a joltingly modern menace.  The Third International’s Beautiful Accident brilliantly updates a time-weathered genre by focusing on texture as much as lyrical content.  In fact, sometimes the words are simply enveloped by the rising rabble of crunchy R&B riffs, prog-rock influenced song structures and pounding rhythms. That starts with the spooky shamble of “The Timekeeper’s Waltz.”  With its echoing, loony-bin beat and a chorus of smeared instruments, the track sounds like Gregg Rolie playing a house gig on an outbound spaceship.  Altoist Ian McDonald, a founding member of King Crimson, finally soars out of the din, only to be overtaken by a volcanic series of guitar blurts from Pearson.  Meanwhile, drummer Nick DiFrisco (David Sanborn, Hiram Bullock) and bassist Bill Foster (Billy Cobham, Larry Coryell) sound so expansive, it’s like they are smashing their instruments against the wall.   Pearson perhaps wisely downshifts into “Amsterdam,” which opens with the dim atmosphere of a doob-rock fever-dream, highlighted by a whispery vocal and a paranoid lyric.  He is singing like a caged animal, like everything is coming out through clinched teeth.  He breaks the tension, for a time, by clicking into a tough new rhythm on the chorus, and McDonald flutters out with a twinkling turn on the flute.  But the verse finds Pearson descending back down into a determined grind, like an old blues record slowing to a stop on a turntable after the lights go out.  That sets up well for “Criminal Cool,” which has the kind of insistent groove associated with north Mississippi roots legend Junior Kimbrough, something far away from the convoluted acoustic picking of the Delta.  Like a rising summer storm, the tune begins as a far off flash of light, then builds into a thunderous assault.  This direful, relentless vibe fits perfectly with the lyric, a scorching indictment of white-collar scoundrels and our society’s penchant for seeing them as something other than common crooks.   “The Son of Jacob Mallett,” if anything, pushes the pedal even further down.  Perhaps the most propulsive track on Beautiful Accident, this track features Foster and DiFrisco working in a foundation-cracking synchronicity.  They smash and wail like turning tires and pumping pistons, as Pearson works the edges of the tune on guitar.  His vocal goes deeper and darker, until it’s almost lost in the mix.  Soon, all that’s left is that titanic groove.  “In the Garden of the Long Pig” holds a similar lyrical mystery, as it rises up like a morning fog.  Pearson picks through a series of swampy excursions for more than a minute and a half before starting the lyric.  This time, he steps closer to the mic, singing with a naked intensity.  Exactly what he’s talking about, however, is another riddle.  The white man’s lie of manifest destiny? Our curious insistence on “saving” native cultures from their own traditions?  No matter.  Pearson sells the song’s dingy portent through a memorably gruff delivery, conveying both a sense of narrative pathos and of looming despair.   A mechanistic progressive-rock flavor surrounds “Penitentiary,” made complete by Pearson’s ominous synthesized flourishes.  He draws a devastating connection between those damaged by every-day life and those looking out from inside prison bars, before the tune moves even further outside of blues convention courtesy of a soaring duet between Pearson and McDonald.  Working in brilliant tandem, with McDonald again on sax, their squalling, emotive asides underscore how enclosed, and enraged, the heartbroken can feel.   Beautiful Accident closes with “The Reprise,” a lengthy excursion that again gives Pearson’s rough-edged next-gen blues outfit a chance to musically explore this world’s sudden twists of fate.  The song, like much of Pearson’s terrific new release, musically mimics those surprises, conveying all of the hopelessness as well as the radiant anger associated with such things. Until the very end, Pearson and Co. play with a fierceness and brutal honesty that could peel the paint off St. Peter’s gate, making Beautiful Accident sound like anything but.     Review by Nick DeRiso Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)” - Nick Deriso

“    The Third International, Beautiful Accident  June 22, 2011 After a long hiatus from music, Andrew Pearson has exploded back on the scene with the release of Beautiful Accident—seven hypnotic tracks of atmospheric soundscapes, vast musicality and underlying stories. The album is touted as “blues for the modern man” but with so many genres being tapped simultaneously, this one is tough to hang a yoke around. Think the urgency of progressive rock guitar, intermittent jazz instrumentation and catchy R&B grooves all piped through deliberate lyrical subject matter. The album opens to “The Timekeeper’s Waltz” with its intermittent guitar riff work and agro tempo from the rhythm section and the constant bluesy notes from Ian McDonald’s alto sax. Pearson channels Widespread’s John Bell in a raspy vocal delivery of mortality contemplating lyrical matter. “Amsterdam” gives way from the upbeat rock to downbeat tension track. The dark backdrop amongst which the whispered rasp lyrics are cast upon make the track sound like a “Traffic meets a Tom Waits’ tune.” Again McDonald shines in this one with this flute bouncing around Pearson’s vocals. Blues riffs dictate “Criminal Cool” with its exploratory effort into the advent of gangster praise. Bent note squeaks and slide riffs prevail just below the foreground and again sounds like it could be track number five on a Widespread Panic album. The guitar shines throughout this track for sure. “In the Garden of the Long Pig” opens to sound effects before caving to more blues-laden guitar plucks that build in crescendo into the lead. While there isn’t as much instrumentation inundating this track the mellow groove carries the listener through from its inception to the gradual fade. Again, the instrumentation throughout the seven tracks is at times hypnotic and at others big and vast. The myriad of styles represented from start to finish reveal a variety of influences and genre borrowing and truly makes it widely approachable. The caliber of musicianship once melded with the clever nature of the lyrical matter just makes this one very complete album. Very, very interested in seeing where exactly Pearson’s new project takes him. And while I wouldn’t call this “blues” per se; I am completely comfortable saying that this is an album for the “thinking man.”  www.reverbnation.com/thethirdinternational   by Chris West” - Chris West

“Dear The Third International, Metro Media Group, Inc. has sent you a message   Subject: Your Submission Hey! This is Christopher Ewing, Host of "The Radio Cafe ReverbNation Indie Music Countdown". I'm writing you to say "Congratulations"! Your music has been chosen for airplay on "The Radio Cafe ReverbNation Indie Music Countdown"! I receive thousands and thousands of submissions for airplay from all over the world, and you were chosen from all of those submissions because I feel that you are one of the BEST independent artists out there right now. Way to go! Once we select a song for airplay, we will email you prior to airing so that you can listen to your song on the show! Congratulations, again, and keep up the excellent work! Christopher Ewing Emmy Award winner and Host of "The Radio Cafe ReverbNation Indie Music Countdown” - Christopher Ewing

“ You have received a new Review from Peter Braidis! ==================================================== The Third International are a bit hard to describe, but in general those with a taste for music that takes it's time getting there and doesn't follow conventional patterns, then this would be a good act to try out. Odd, intoxicating moods take songs such as "The Timekeeper's Waltz" and the 10 minute epic "The Reprise" into realms of almost Grateful Dead-type tripiness. That's not to say that The Third International sound anything like The Dead, but the spirit and vibe are there. Guitars, bass and well-placed sax all have their share in the music and the vocals are restrained and sometimes treated in a foggy mix. It's all very well done and quite interesting with something of a live feel, that no doubt would lead to a cool concert experience. "Penitentiary" has a psychedelic, bluesy haze about it, though there are some lively, Jazzy and even Pink Floyd-esque sections. The Third International are well worth investigating. ” - Peter Braidis

“ALL WHAT’S ROCK CD REVIEW: ENTRE LAS AMERICAS 6-21-2012   Jun21 Third International – Entre Las Americas  By Michael Rand  //  Reviews  //  0 Comments Third International – Entre Las Americanas Written by Rory Richardson edited by Michael Rand  Overall Rating: 7/10 This is Third Internationals second release to date entitled “Entre Las America” released in 2012 and certainly does not disappoint. Venture to the internet – it will reveal this is one artist (Andrew Pearson) who takes his songwriting craft pretty seriously.  A guitarist for nearly 30 years, he has performed with numerous greats over the years. Now on his own via this project: Third International he brings his expertise along with several impressive session players like himself: Andrew Pearson (Guitars, Guitar Synthesizer, Vocals, Electronic Percussion, and Sampling, Bill Foster (Bass),AdrianHarpham (Drums), and Dave Eggar (Cello). The opening track “Ellis Island” sets the stage perfectly for this CD. It was a great intro piece that stuck in my head and had me eager for what was ahead. All in all the whole CD (presented as musical themes) is brilliantly delivered with dark and foreboding musical textures and flowing compositions that covers allot of ground. Musical overtones reminded me a bit of the usual suspects: Peter Gabriel, ELP, Yes, and Van Der Graaf Generator. and many more guitar greats out there I need not mention. There are some fantastic pieces on this CD which gives this musical production a very accessible feel full of mystery.  Pearson’s guitar playing is brilliant and I would describe his style as filled with musical indulgence and experience. Favorite piece on the CD is a toss up between “Living on the Sun” and ‘Sunday Morning in theMission.”   CD is a bit short with only 8 songs. If there was one word I would use to describe Third International it would be diversified. This CD will simply make your day more entertaining, but beware Third International is one artists not so easily pinned down comparable to a musical chameleon. It’s a musical experience you will return to again and again – picking out something you may have missed the first time. URL http://www.p-ears-on.com/ BANDCAMP – http://thirdinternational.bandcamp.com/album/entre-las-americas Music can be Purchased at CD BABY http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/thirdinternational2     http://allwhatsrock.com/blog/category/reviews” - MIchael Rand

“ MUSIC EMISSIONS REVIEW 6-21-2012or Register to Rate Albums   Review: on 2012-06-21 Michael_Morrison Said: Most would agree most popular artists out there have something truly special to give to their fans. This goes above the typical attributes like raw talent, amazing songs, nice voice, or even a very marketable look, sound and image. There's something truly infectious at the core of these artists that simply makes us feel good when we listen to them. Whatever "it" is - they all seem to have "it". Today I listened to the latest CD from Third International featuring singer/songwriter/guitarist Andrew Pearson (Entre Las Americas – 2012). From start to finish this CD from TI is very pleasurable and entertaining. It has a very melodic, catchy marketable progressive-pop rock feel to it and even dabbles in Alternative Rock. Any fans of any of these musical styles will enjoy this latest release from Third International. It's clearly marketed for those who like a male singer front with a mystique of say Radiohead, Yes and even some Tool. I get the impression Pearson and company are rolling with what they know as performers and songwriters within all these songs. In other words they hit the mark remarkably well by just being who they are. Favorite tracks include (Ellis Island), (Mexico) and (Toys). All songs strike the perfect balance between rock, alternative rock and progressive singer/songwriter pop. The songwriting is impressive and digs a bit deeper than the next Independent Artist. Within each one of these songs Pearson bares his soul and delivers pure musical mojo. I will add Mr. Pearson can play the guitar quite well and reminds me of Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits) and David Gilmour (Pink Floyd). He plays and sings with much in the way of passion and precision. Playing from other band members is spot on and just makes the whole CD even more enjoyable. The overall vibe of the production is very melodic, progressive and unpredictable. I also enjoyed the whole underlying theme of the production as well - very much like a Robert Ludlum spy novel. In close Entre Las Americas by Third International fronted my musical mastermind Andrew Pearson is extremely compelling and fascinating. Once again I'm not so sure what "it" is but Andrew Pearson and Third International have whatever "it" may be. Michael Morrison (UK) West Lothian, Scotland   http://www.musicemissions.com/artists/albums/index.php?album_id=15642” - MIchael Morrison

“   Genre: RockLabel: ParacelsusVisit Web Site   Tracks1. Chemical Eyes2. Good Friday at Little Rock   Third InternationalChemical Eyes Andrew Pearson has released albums in the past with the rest of the outfit, Third International, but on these two tracks, decides going solo is best for interpretation purposes. Both tracks are cloaked with social and political influences (heck, the name of the band itself is political in nature), and have real meaning. “Chemical Eyes” speaks of how political and religious leaders are only actors in this game of life. We, as humanity, should learn to function and think without being puppets, without being told how to think. The inspiration for the chord changes during the lead in are from a trip in a cab Pearson once took in which the driver couldn’t keep a steady pace. It provides a neat hook that makes the listener want to hear where the song takes them. This song has a sort of spacey, acid rock feel. The only complaint I have is sometimes Pearson’s voice gets lost in the cool music, and on a song with a message, I’d like to hear it all. “Good Friday at Little Rock” definitely has more of a bluesy vibe, with a low beat and nice guitar work. The song was originally written as a poem in 1996 and won a New York Times award. It talks about how Little Rock isn’t a money hungry place to be, there’s not a problem with overcrowding, and just in general, the laidback feel to the place. It’s a cool, funky track. This two track combination provides a different flavor of music than you usually hear in rock. It’s a little spacey, a little funky, fresh, and dirty at the same time. It sends out a message, and I’m always a fan of music that makes you think. I’ll definitely be checking out some more of Third International’s music.   Christen LaFond October 23, 2012 ©MuzikReviews.com ” - Chris LaFond

“Third International's new video for "Amsterdam (Live)" is SO far out yet it is SO in the moment." (Jimmy Rae, Skope Entertainment Inc.)"Welcome to "Amsterdam" where the mood is mellow, the morale is deep and the scenery is trippy." (Jimmy Rae, Skope Entertainment Inc.)"Andrew Pearson & company are taking from the psychedelic rock legends Pink Floyd and adding their own Third International-kind-of twist to the whole thing." (Jimmy Rae, Skope Entertainment Inc.) ” - James Rae

“ </body></html>"" style="vertical-align: bottom; border-image: none; border-width: 0px;" width="728"> </body></html>"" style="vertical-align: bottom; display: none; visibility: hidden; border-image: none; border-width: 0px;" width="0"> HOME FEATURES NEWS REVIEWS� RSAC BLOG� BIZ TALK WITH CYRUS RHODES COMICS DEEP THOUGHTS DIANA’S MUSIC CAFE GIVEAWAYS GUEST BLOG INDIE MUSIC SPOTLIGHT JIMMY 2TIMES RAE LINEAR REGRESSION MKM NOTES FROM THE SOUND TABLE MONKEY SEEN MUSIC UP CLOSE OFF THE RECORD RAW TALENT SKOPE LIVE! SKOPE TV CHANNEL SONICBIDS A2W SOUND AND FURY SKOPED OUT MARKETPLACE ABOUT Third International, IDES December 23, 2013 By Skope The politically & socially-conscious unit Third International is back with their first ever live production titled ‘IDES’.  Fronted by songsmith Andrew Pearson, the new release features four songs along with an “Intro” (“Criminal Cool”) & outro theme (“Letter to a Muse”).  ‘IDES’ was filmed and recorded on March 15th, 2013 at Pearson’s newly renovated Calicut Studios in New Jersey.  Besides recording & producing the in-studio videos, Pearson also handles vocals, guitars & synthesizers.  The Third International lineup also includes: Bill Foster on bass & Derek McKenzie on drums and this current project also added two new additions: Enrique Mancia on bass & Jun Nishijima on drums.  Together, Third International is making studio magic with IDES where you’re getting one cool jam session that is in the zone! The four tracks include: “Timekeeper’s Waltz”, “Amsterdam”, “Living on the Sun” and “Caudillo” and they are all featured on previous albums.  “Timekeeper’s Waltz” & “Amsterdam” are included on the record ‘Beautiful Accident’ and “Living on the Sun” & “Caudillo” are part of the album ‘Entre Las Americas’ (http://www.skopemag.com/2012/05/09/third-international-entre-las-americas).  But the beauty of ‘IDES’ is that Third International recorded & filmed these songs live at Pearson’s Calicut Studios breathing new & invigorating life into the numbers.  I have to say that watching these performances on DVD really added a whole new dimension to the Third International aura.  The visual element seemed to further enhance the listening experience by appealing to all senses.  You don’t just get to hear Andrew’s piercing, deep ‘n’ direct lyrics but you can see him sing the lines complete with dark ‘n’ stylish sunglasses.   And you don’t just hear those killer guitar riffs & chords but you can now see the mighty guitar in all its glory with Andrew Pearson playin’ his heart out!  IDES ( excerpts from the DVD )http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D3r92WzdwM The video starts out with a perfect “Into” that really gets the viewer pumped up early on and interested to see what’s coming up next.  On the song “Amsterdam”, one will hear an extremely trippy, slow and melodic sound with guitar playing that will put you in a trance.  On this track, I can’t help but think of the masters of the slowed-down tempo Pink Floyd where Third International is definitely incorporating a bit of that Pink Floyd style.  On top of that, Third International utilizes other famous elements from the likes of Pink Floyd, which includes a progressive, psychedelic sound.  Besides that, the audience will also hear elements of: blues, alternative & indie rock along with some highly poetic lyrics from Pearson that would make Bob Dylan proud.  One of my favorite performances on ‘IDES’ has to be “Living on the Sun” due to the fact that the song had such an infectious beat & rhythm.  Additionally, this track had a bass line that was simply on fire and the overall playing was in sync.  “Living on the Sun”, to me, seemed to have that special quality & certain something where you could really sense a deep connection being made both musically & artistically between all members of Third International.  I personally loved how ‘IDES’ ended the DVD with the outro “Letter to a Muse” because the group set the tone and the mood through the music being played in the background and the powerful image of the guitar.  The guitar just sitting there on display as the main star with smoke rising up above it gave off a very mystic vibe and proved to be visually stunning.   So in the end, the man behind Third International who gave you “Acid Swamp” and thought-provoking lyrics continues to bring the noise on ‘IDES’.  The actual release date for this project is set for none other than Christmas day, so Merry Christmas indeed to Third International and all their fans!  This will be available to purchase very soon as a DVD/CD combo pack and one that should definitely be in your collection.  So be on the lookout for that as I highly recommend Third International’s ‘IDES’; you won’t be disappointed.  All of the hard work in the studio comes alive on ‘IDES’ where Third International captured live magic on film.  And don’t forget to check out the YouTube video for excerpts from the live/in-studio DVD right here! http://www.p-ears-on.com http://www.reverbnation.com/thethirdinternational  5/5 Skopes ” - Jimmy Rae