Review Summary: Thomas Dutton and his brother combine to form a musical with more guests than a rap album. While not the most creative story line, it ends up creating a very nice story, a very nice, cheesy story.
Forgive Durden is:
* Thomas Dutton - vocals, guitar, bass, percussion, trumpet
* Paul Dutton - other instruments
* Rudy Gajadhar - drums
* Casey Bates - producer
Musical Guests (all vocals):
* O The Scientist - Casey Crescenzo
* Bawaba Brothers - John Baldwin Gourley, Kris Anaya
* Narrator - Aaron Weiss
* Gargul The Oracle - Danny Stevens
* Toba the Tura - Chris Conley
* Sangara - Daniel Young
* Barayas the Spider - Max Bemis
* Princess Anhura - Greta Salpeter
* Pallis - Brendon Urie
* King Malka - Nic Newsham
* Doctor Dumaya - Shawn Harris
* Nidria - Lizzie Huffman
* Adakias - Thomas Dutton
* Ahrima - Thomas Dutton
Not the most creative story in the world, this project by Thomas Dutton was out there and new for music. It was created mostly by him, his brother Paul, and the drummer for
Gatsbys American Dream, Rudy Gajadar. The story revolves around the reuniting of the world from Light and Dark, with a moral of never giving up looking for hope and love being the main theme. The songs tie together and flow extremely well, usually ending with Aaron Wiess giving an explanation of the song, and leading the flow into the next track. The grand songs feel extremely grand, but the more depressing songs sadly don't have the same feeling. The instruments can't seem to create the mood of depression as well as they create the mood of happiness. Also, the idea of using Aaron Wiess as narrator was a poor move. A man with so much vocal talent can not be thrown into such a simple spoken position. Even though his voice fits perfectly for a narrator, he could've played a much more important character and done so much more, as people who have listened to mewithoutYou know, his can do some amazing things with his voice.
The music is much more centered around string instruments, brass, and a piano. If follows with the story, playing very nice in the background at times when something such as a soliloquy would come in, but usually when an interaction or something of the sorts comes into play, it starts to get choppy, with all of the string instruments being plucked instead of strummed. The drums are also very simple, with almost no fills at all being present throughout the whole album. I find this to be another waste of talent, as Rudy Gajadar has shown in Gatsbys American Dream that he is a more than competent enough drummer. The music is only in place to add further feeling, which it does. When a hair-raising scene occurs, the strings are plucked, the piano is breathless and quick, and the trumpet all of the sudden becomes muted. That is the formula present for all songs, the music only adds to the play, as the music should in a musical.
The story, if you decided not to read above, is about a world being divided into two, with a prophecy that two people, one person from the light, and one person from the dark, would reunite the two worlds together. It's a story of hope and love, two people meant for each other intertwined by fate to meet each other, two people destined to be so much more than just another average couple. While not the most original story line, it's ambitious enough in a musical form to feel fresh and creative, to a point. It also is helped by some fantastic performances from all the graces. Greta Specter, one of my more favorite pop singers, shows off her absolutely gorgeous vocals and her great (not spectacular, or mind-blowing) range as one of the lead role's of the album. Another hand also goes out to Nic Newsham, even though only in one song, he plays his part very well. Everyone that contributed to this album played their respective roles very well. It's a simple story that doesn't suffer from many plot holes, and has a positive, also cheesy, message at the end.
Sometimes the album as a whole seems to focus too much on the lyrics and the story, and the music gets thrown in the backseat to the story. It also suffers from a little bit of being too long, with the shortest song being 4:25, sans the intermission. The story can drag out at some parts, where they try to throw in too many details at once, and the explanation of the songs at the end can also drag on and seem to defer the story at times and drag it out of pace. The album does also lose it's bang in the end, where Aaron Wiess tells everyone to pass on the story, as an idea is only relevant if it is being thought upon. Even though it carries a nice message at the end, it sort of goes against the grand epic ending to the story where Pallis curses himself for killing his own brother for not believing his fate. It may be crazy at times, too long, and a little bit pretentious, but damn it all, Thomas Dutton has put out a fine release in 2008.
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But now, for those interested, the story of it all:
Razia's Shadow is one tell-tale of a story. The story is of one man, O the Scientist, creating a world in which him and His people will live together in harmony. He has two pure cherubs, Ahrima and Nidria, who believe in hope and love. Ahrima has fantastic skills, ones that shape this very world, but they are being ignored, which greatly frustrates him, but Nidria is there to always calm him down. After some time, Ahrima confosses his love for Nidria, and Nidria confesses that she loves him too. Nidria tells Ahrima that one day O will realize his great skills and that he must wait and be patient, because his time is in fact coming. Ahrima keeps on trying to tell O about his skills, but O dismisses him quickly, frustrating Ahrima even more. Ahrima lays alone and dreams about the day when everyone will finally see his great skills, and how all the other's will be gracious for him and show their love for him. He goes to ask O one more time to show him what he can do, but when O does not reply, Ahrima finally snaps, and so begins his destruction of this very world.
Ahrima stays alone and compliments how he shall bring his wrath to the world. Barayas the Spider comes to his shoulder and spills him ideas of grandeur and flatters his ego by telling him that "he has a special gift, but everyone still treats him like a kid", and that he should use it. Barayas tells him to bring the Lamps so Barayas can destroy them. Ahrima, under the effects of Barayas flattery, brings the Lamps to him, and Ahrima runs around, using the lamps to burn the very creation that O had built. The Narrator then reveals that his actions were a turn for the worse, and Toba the Tura is sent out to punish him while the rest of the world tries to pick up the pieces of Ahrima's consequences. Toba the Tura seeks out Ahrima and shows him the damage he's done. Ahrima, finally realizing what horrible things he has done, pleads for forgiveness from Tura, who denies him and tells him that him, and everyone else ,including Nidria, will go to a patch of land not effected by Ahrima, and they will build a wall separating these two worlds, the Light side, and the Dark side. (creative!)
A prophecy is then revealed that two people from both sides will eventually fall in love, and that these two people will be the great reuniters of the two sides of the world. The Narrator then tells us of two brothers on the Dark Side: Pallis, the older of the two, and Adakias, the younger. When they were younger, they were told of legends about the Divine Terrene and Holy the Sea, legends that Adakias takes to heart and mind. Pallis and everyone else scoff at him and try to convince him that they are just myths, and that he will never leave the Dark world. Adakias is the prince of the Dark world, along with Pallis, but no longer wants to live there. The stories of life and the world over yonder has intrigued him to a point of no more, and he wants to leave for it. Everyone asks him why he can't just be like his brother, but he longs for the other world, believing it's fate for him to find the other side, and maybe fate for him to fulfill the prophecy. Trying to derail him, they tell him that all he is saying is non-sensical ranting, which almost get's him to not go. Adakias mourns over the fact that his families name outshines his own name, and his own desires. He still decides that he must go. With one last try, Pallis tells him that if he goes, Pallis will hunt him down and will make him suffer the consequences of his actions. Adakias tries to convince Pallis that this is his fate, Pallis tells him that this path will only lead to his destruction. Even through all of the hate Adakias has recieved, he still leaves for the Light side. The Narrator then tells of us of Adakias on the Light side, disguised as a normal citizen, where he then sees Princess Anhura, who is also feeling feelings of disconnection with her world.
Adakias and Princess Anhura meet and from an instant they realize what is meant to be. They quickly realize their love and confess to each other, knowing that they are meant from something bigger and better. Princess Anhura does not know that Adakias comes from the Dark, and he never tells her either. They decide to wed, but first Adakias must ask Princess Anhura's mather, King Malka, for his daughter's hand in marriage. Adakias approaches King Malka and asks, but King Malka refuses, suspicious that all Adakias wants is his throne and jewels, and King Malka also sees the dark in Adakias, only making him more wary and suspicious of this new character in this world. Adakias and Anhura decide to wed in secret, but Anhura starts to feel week and Adakias knows exactly why. It's the Dark in him, and it's getting to her, destroying her body and weakening her to what may be her inevitable death. Instead of telling her where he is from, Adakias takes her to a specialist to see if there is a way to solve this crisis against fate.
Adakias and Anhura meet the Bawaba Brothers, and they tell Adakias the story of his families past, and the world's past. They tell him the story of Ahrima, and how he brought the world to what it is. After hearing their story, Adakias is 100% positive that it is him and Anhura who the prophecy speaks of, and that this is fate for him to fulfill it. Before they leave the Bawaba Brothers to meet the specialist, they warm Adakias and Anhura of people who seem friendly, but are really out to get them. They accept the Bawaba Brother's advice, and move on to meet the Doctor. They feel suspicious of the Doctor, remembering the Brother's advice from earlier, even though he does act very generously. The Doctor says he can cure her, but for a steep fee. He will cure her, but she must stay with the Doctor, and she will be his for his own pleasure. Anhura does not want this, but Adakias convinces her that this is the only way, and she agrees and follows the Doctor's orders. She is cured, but the jolly mood does not last for long, for Adakias' brother, Pallis, is at the door, and he demands that Adakias proves his love for her.
Adakias and Anhura try to convince Pallis of how many marriage propositions she had received, but how she had denied them all, choosing Adakias over all of the wealthy. Pallis then brings out Adakias' secret that he comes from the world of Dark, but Adakias tells her that doesn't change his love for her at all, and that he will always love her. This angers Pallis, who is angry that the new information of Adakias' origins has not destroyed the love. Pallis jumps to stab Anhura, but Adakias jumps in the middle of the knife, taking the blow for the princess. Pallis immediately regrets his decision, realizing that his brother actually loved her. He begs for Adakias to not give into death, to be strong, the strong person who went against everyone and left his own throne in the Dark world. Pallis apologizes for not seeing that his brother was truly the prophecy, and Adakias forgives him, saying his fate and the prophecy have been truly fulfilled. He tells Pallis and Anhura not to cry for his wound, and dies right there. The Narrator ends the musical telling of the giant wall between the Dark and Light dividing to nothing, with the two worlds again joined together as one.
FIN
