The latest album from Canadian dark synth artist Daniel Belasco releases this long coming and extremely personal album about dealing with the passing of his oldest brother in 2021 on Distortion Records. Daniel has continued to amass respect from music insiders for his song crafting expertise and beautiful compositions. Remaining largely underrated by overall mainstream audiences in spite of his infectious melodies and retro style.
Daniel has a true gift as a tunesmith. An ability to find complex hidden paths to the most infectious melodies. His voice is big. A bit golden age superhero cheese, that could easily veer into tongue and cheek. It’s the honesty in the lyrics that make it ring genuine. That makes that big blasting tone so powerful. This is a record that never hides behind walls. It has a Saturday morning cartoons with a bowl of cereal innocence, stained by the wisdom of one thousand heartbreaks.
Daniel Belasco says: “Brother Bones is, quite honestly, the most personal album Glass Apple Bonzai has ever released.”
Brother Bones | Glass Apple Bonzai (bandcamp.com)
Favorite Tracks:
Toys: – I really love the range Daniel shows here. For someone known for synthwave, this track brings a prog rock complexity and skill level on base and guitar. Dare I say it has a Rush style of instrument mastery and purity of lyrics. I’m not sure if he is doubling his voice for these harmonies or having a guest, but the effect on the chorus is beautiful.
The Changes In Your Heart: – I’m always a sucker for the track on a great record that seems to pull in a different direction. Most of this album has a sense of recalling happy memories. Thinking on a way to move forward from loss. The Changes In Your Heart has a much darker tone that plunges into murky waters. The psychedelic breakdown lends a further note of spiritual introspection. This was a perfect note of contrast that made every other track burn brighter.