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CD Reviews

Rust From Rain Shines (rev. of Jeffry Braun's CD)

"I watch my daylight fade, my twilight dreams dissolve away in tossing tries at missing sleep…." From the song "Say Goodbye"

Heartbreak hurts but it reminds us we are alive; it turns up the volume of our feelings and forces us to confront them. Jeffry Braun has created a CD of songs that celebrate this sense of heightened living that is inherent in the survival of the human condition. His brilliantly poetic love songs may be full of heartbreak, but there is no despair here. This is a celebration of a broken heart which rivals Elliot Smith's best work in its defiance and earnestness. There is no sentimentality here, just raw, passionate poetry. His voice, sometimes whispery and at other times hoarse and raw, sounds live and human and lives up to the feeling that the songs convey. The production is big but not melodramatic, with a great mix of old and new sounds (Wurlitzer, Mellotron, electric guitars, piano, and a big, warm rhythm section.) This is a CD which will not fade with time. Aptly named, the songs on this recording shine through the rust as the human heart shines through its daily tragedies. A celebration of the art of being human, these songs shed a light on the beauty of transcendence. A light more like a winter sunset than a stage-light. Go to Jeff's site to get a copy.

Review by Fred Gillen Jr.