Dan Quinton - A Part Of The Plan
It’s time for the first ever Antix Album Review. We thought rather than trying to pick a song from an album to review, we’d just review the whole thing! Todays album is a new one from local artist Dan Quinton. Here’s a quick bit about Dan, before we take a look at his latest album, “A Part Of The Plan”. Bio A wistful singer-songwriter who tends to take a stance between comedic and thought-provoking monologues and lyrical content. As a 25 year old musician, Dan is constantly pushing the boundaries of what being a singer-songwriter can be and is swiftly bolstering his sound into the music scene of the southwest. The Album 1: Blue Sunday - I’ve heard this song in Dan’s promo videos that he shares on social media, and I really like it. Very jazzy and upbeat. Makes you want to get up and dance along to it. And what really impressed me was the use of the Organ. Something you don’t hear a lot of in modern tracks anymore, but Dan, has used it perfectly. The electric guitar is really nice, the drums have a really cool solid groove, and it all comes together for a wonderful chorus. I could also really hear this song being used in the tv & film world. Great start! 2: If You Still Do It With Me Everyday - Lovely dreamy piano already setting the vibe. Dan’s voice was a lot softer on this track compared to the opener, which shows his versatility and control. He doesn’t go storming in with big loud belts, he eases you into the album as a whole. The backing vocals were amazing. Really, really nice. It gave me early 2000’s easy listening vibes, and kind of reminded me of Toploaders “Dancing In The Moonlight” for some reason. Some nice acoustic guitar in there too, as well as…a harmonica?! Again, something you don’t hear too much of in today's music, but it fits in perfectly! 3: Hamish - We’re only three tracks in, but I really started to get a sense of how good Dan, is as a songwriter and producer. Some more guitar and even some bongo’s which was unexpected. But it’s different, and thinking outside of the box which is what I like! Once again, complemented by some lovely soothing backing vocals. This track even featured….a key change! So underutilized in todays market, but keeps the song interesting. One thing that stood out to me was the lines “If I was gay, I’d be straight up your way”, which I found quite funny, but because I know exactly what Dan means! He’s showing love towards this person who he thinks is a wonderful human, and who is maybe on the attractive side, and Dan’s simply complimenting their appearance and nature. Very clever. 4: Demons (Those Old Days) - This one didn’t posses as much energy as the other tracks….but that’s good. It still has that head nodding ability which is good. Much more laid back, much more chill, short and sweet. Again, the backing vocals really lift up the track and stop it from getting too dark. The bass is simple, but it elevates the rest of the track and keeps it interesting. And another point for using a slightly outdated instrument - the banjo. But it fits perfectly. 5: Time - I really love how the song builds up out of nowhere into a beautiful uplifting chorus. And it’s one again that makes you want to dance along. It gives me festival vibes if I’m honest. A hot, muddy tent, but everyone is slightly drunk and they’re having an awesome time just singing along and dancing. It kind of reminds me of “Castle On The Hill” if it was less pop and more singer songwriter. The song ends with “Maybe you and I should spend a little bit of time”. He ended with the song title which is great. Someone could have this album on in the background and then go “oh that must have been Time. I enjoyed that song”. 6: Oh Lady - Back to a more mellow sound now, and I like that the vocal has some kind of effect on it that makes it sound like a telephone call, or a voice recording. Some more nice dreamy chords floating around. Short but sweet. 7: Crazy (Love’s A Game) - This song was very 50’s/60’s kinda vibe, but with a modern twist. It’s got that ballroom dancing time signature too which I like. Another song with love as the theme, and I really love the overall feel of this one. It’s a very romantic song as well. Another that I feel would fit in perfectly in a movie. 8: No More Getting In My Head - This is Dan, doing what he does best. Making great songs that make you want to dance and sing along. It might be niche, but I would definitely play this during a road trip somewhere. Some of the lyrics that I’ve picked out were “No more messing with my head. I’ve been on the mend. So maybe I’ll get drunk instead”. Really clever. The title makes it seem like a malicious song, but it’s actually a really nice and upbeat one. And the more I listened to it, the more I thought, maybe it’s about trying not to fall for someone again in fear of being messed around. Clever. 9: Worth - Beautiful piano and some soft falsetto vocals. It features more of the cello and violin. And something that popped into my head was listening to this underneath the stars. Again, maybe one for the movie world. A slow ballad where I love the title, and love the ending. Fantastic. 10: Friend - The closing track. And I couldn’t have picked a better one personally. Some spacey electric guitar with some more orchestral instruments. More soft sounding vocals and another ballad type song, something that I think Dan, is a specialist at. The whole song build and builds, all the way to this great climax with a guitar solo embedded deep down. I was really impressed with the production quality on this one. It feels very professional. The songwriting as well was top notch! Final Thoughts. I really enjoyed the album. It was all of the thing that you want from an album. Easy to listen to, but still fun with some surprises buried in there to keep you engaged and to keep the good feelings flowing. Something I’ll end on is how impressed I was with not just the production, but specifically the songwriting. It’s absolutely top notch and I’ll end by saying that I think Dan, is the best songwriter that I know personally! Congrats on the album, Dan. I had a lot of fun listening to it. The only thing that would make it perfect was if it was a little bit longer. But I’ll definitely be back for the next album! 9/10
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