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CD REVIEW: Andrew Pearson (Third International)
By Cyrus Rhodes - 05/15/2012 - 03:55 PM EDT

Artist: Andrew Pearson
Album: Entre Las Americas
Label: Boosh Music
Website: http://www.reverbnation.com/thethirdinternational
Genre: Ambient, Experimental, Ethno-Ambient, Electro
Sounds Like: King Crimson, Peter Gabriel, Robert Plant
Technical Grade: 7/10
Production/Musicianship Grade: 7/10
Commercial Value: 7/10
Overall Talent Level: 10/10
Songwriting Skills: 8/10
Performance Skill: 9/10
Best Songs: Baba, Living on the Sun, Sunday Morning in the Mission
Weakness: Amateurish Mix, CD Manufacturing, Marketability
CD Review: Guitarist-Singer-Songwriter Andrew Pearson (Third International) releases his second CD entitled “Entre Las Americas” in 2012. Pearson is no stranger to the music business having worked with the likes of  Ian McDonald on alto sax (King Crimson, Foreigner) Bill Foster on Bass (Billy Cobham) and Nick Difrisco on Drums and Percussion. Band members include Andrew Pearsn (Vocals, Guitars, Guitar Synthesizers and Programming, Bill Foster (Bass), Adrian Harpham (Drums) and Dave Eggar (Cellos).

The CD kicks things off with “Ellis Island” a progressive yet flowing intro piece that serves up dynamic rhythm, against infectious vocal vibe and hypnotic melody line. Track 2 “Baba” shifts gears a bit with methodical drum beat against mesmerizing guitar rhythms and hypnotic vocal ambience from Pearson. This coupled with mesmerizing lyrical content makes for a very interesting musical statement. Track 3 “Living on the Sun” serves up infectious piece that flows and ebbs its way through to emotional fruition.  As the CD slowly unfolds I can hear many different musical soundscapes reminiscent of such classic acts such as Incubus, King Crimson, Genesis, and even Peter Gabriel. Right from the start you will notice rich musical textures overflowing everywhere, full of passion, variety & strong melodic structure. The songs themselves are addictive, and packed full of passionate lyrical content and subject matter that simply cannot be faked. The music itself is an impressive blend of rock, alternative rock with just of progressive Rock. Along the way besides the typical 4 piece standard rock delivery I didn’t fail to notice well placed percussive accents, guitar synthesizers, programming touches, ambient Cello, solo guitar, well placed harmonies layered within the music. Pearson makes no attempt at sugar coating the truth via his music, instead he tells the truth with bold honesty. His voice works well within the confines of this catalogue. Enter the overall musicianship from Pearson and company. Kudos goes out to the amazing bass guitar work from Bill Foster. What I like most about the music is its sheer unpredictability and amazing originality. Song for song you can never really predict what’s waiting for you around the next corner. Also present a barrage of sonic touches, electronic percussive elements and sinister moog bass and well placed keyboard accents all bringing even more musical variety to the table. From chilling “Cuadillo” to grooving “Mexico” to hypnotic “Sunday Morning in the Mission” to mesmerizing “Toys” this CD has something for just about everyone. The CD ends with Track8 “The Edge” the perfect finale statement for a CD of this caliber.

The mix is a bit all over the place and lacks continuity track to track, with disproportionate instrumentation levels and a dated sound. Additionally there is no information within the liner notes indicating who these assigned engineers were (Recording, Mixing, Mastering). Typically all 3 phases of the production process should be handled by a separate music professional altogether. The impact 3 ears will have on your overall sound cannot be overstated. The CD disk itself is made of print paper, not the typical silk screen material you see on professional CD’s. Many of the above are not typical of Gold Standard CD releases. I fully realize this is a subjective art form but many of the aforementioned issues do effect the productions overall marketability. 

“Entre Las Americas” by Third International is an impressive musical production from start to finish. It’s strong suit – the amazing creative genius that is Andrew Pearson. He possesses enough musical talent and songwriting prowess to be extremely dangerous. The music is clean, goes down smooth and is full of amazing musical soundscapes that come at you from every direction. The messages are fascinating, compelling, mysterious and thought provoking– all from the artist’s brilliant perspective. The true meaning of some of these songs is buried deep within the lyrical content and is not so easily pinned down the first listen. I really admire artists out there who are themselves and just let the chips fall where they may. Praise goes out to the artist that can show us something real & genuine beneath their veil of vanity. Andrew Pearson is one of those artists.


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