Trevor Sensor – A Few Tears of Eros
This material comes from a husky-voiced, literate heartland (Iowa) singer/songwriter on his 4th LP. Featured are 13 songs that can be rooted in a middle-of-the-road/easy listening style not unlike singers like Frank Sinatra or late career Alfie Zappacosta. Sensor has a distinctive voice & while his style is assembled from past artists, he’s unique & formal. There’s plenty of drama to his tone & character (“When I Had the Gall”).
Trevor proves his R&R pedigree with “Heaven’s a Big Disgrace.” It doesn’t make him Elvis, but he does have an upbeat thrust that maneuvers the music with skill. On songs like this, he’s closer to Canada’s Zappacosta (“Runaround”) at full thrust. The band is tight & well developed as the drums pound with abandon & the guitars snake through the notes. The project was produced by Brandon Darner, who captures Trevor’s nuances on A Few Tears of Eros (Dropped Aug 8/High Black Desert Records/39:25).
The most average track is the short “Thomas Park,” while the smoky, easy listening Tom Waits-oriented “When the War Gets Done” is an artier piece. Well sung, subtle arrangement & melancholy muted trumpet mixed with Trevor’s expressive voice on a high wire of notes. Impressive.
“Schmuck for Luck” is a misfire. Some tunes display a voice too quirky. Whereas the first 2 numbers were better balanced. “There Is a Dark Matter” has a tint of late-career Bob Dylan without his blues inflections. The lyrics are acute & the performance is far more in Trevor’s wheelhouse. This is excellent.
“Now That I’m Naked” comes off like a maddening John Lennon outtake with a guest spot by Tom Waits. It’s not a novelty song, but it’s performed tongue in cheek with a rollicking saloon piano. Lots of music hall, carnival music with dark overtones, with Brecht-Weill elements. The finale is the best screaming I’ve heard since Lennon’s “Mother.” Sometimes there’s too much salt in the soup (“Trampin,’”). The LP is certainly not boring. There are moments of serious stuff that work – “Take All My Love” has its quirkiness, but it’s a charming quirkiness.
The song “Too Many Years of Drinkin’ & Cryin,” has an element of lyrical pronunciation like late career Dylan & it’s surprisingly good. Compositionally, the music is noir-deep Brecht-Weill (“Mack the Knife”) — German version. While “Keepin’ By Your Door” is way too close to late career Dylan vocally & resembles his classic 1978 cut “Is Your Love In Vain?”
The album cover is ugly & the set is for selective tastes. Some will find the music intriguing & interesting. I did.
Highlights – “When I Had the Gall,” “Heaven’s a Big Disgrace,” “There Is a Dark Matter,” “Now That I’m Naked,” “Thomas Park,” “Take All My Love,” & “Too Many Years of Drinkin’ & Cryin.’”
B&W image courtesy of High Black Desert Records. CD @ Bandcamp & https://www.highblackdesertrecords.com/#items & https://trevorsensorofficial.com/