The Mercury Project

Many local CDs feel unfinished; they require listeners to imagine what the songs might sound like had they been recorded under optimal conditions, with first-rate production and refined arrangements. But that's not the case with On to You. The third Mercury Project album is a multi-layered work whose sonics consistently...

By Michael Roberts

March 8, 2007

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Many local CDs feel unfinished; they require listeners to imagine what the songs might sound like had they been recorded under optimal conditions, with first-rate production and refined arrangements. But that's not the case with On to You. The third Mercury Project album is a multi-layered work whose sonics consistently enhance the material.

The Project's Jason Duffy and C. Vincent Plummer are comfortable operating in a wide range of styles, and if their eclecticism sometimes leads them astray (example: the awkward "Payroll"), it pays dividends on the likes of "Buena Onda," a bilingual mélange that shouldn't hang together but does so anyhow. Just as impressive is the work of producer Dan Devine, formerly of the Czars, and mixer Colin Bricker. "Archetype," appropriately enough, is typical: The tune's a paragon of clarity, allowing hooky guitars, electronic filigree and artist Michael Bailey's sinuous horn charts to co-exist rather than congeal.

It's not how you start, it's how you finish.

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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