Defiantly Stunning
They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover which, taken purely as a metaphor, is pretty sound advice. It is quite nice, however, when your first judgements on an album's cover are backed up by the music contained within. 'Puddle City Racing Lights', the debut album by Thomas Dillon's musical creation Windmill, is such an album.
The solitary, feature-less, cloak-clad figure on the album's cover is a fantastic visual representation of Windmill's sad, potent and heartfelt sound – almost a personification of Thomas Dillon's lonely and broken, yet melodic, voice. Equally, the neon heart on the figure's chest provides an apt metaphor for Dillon's heart-on-sleeve, emotional lyrics.
'Puddle City Racing Lights' is a delightful mix of musical effects. The quirky piano melodies are reminiscent of Dresden Dolls' half uplifting theatrical, half down-to-earth mournful. Dillon's narrative voice is comparable to that of The Mountain Goats or Jeffrey Lewis, weaving around the surface of stories, hinting at a deeper, hidden tale. At times as uplifting as The Flaming Lips, at times as sad as the heartbreaking emotional melancholy of the Red House Painters. Blending the modern with the classic, this album takes advantage both of electronic samples and the unbeatable emotion of strings and keys.
Opening track 'Tokyo Moon', seemingly a song about addiction, carries a fantastic high-flying chorus. 'Boarding Lounges' is ostensibly a love song, but, with the chorus line, "I don't want you, you don't want me, strange enough I think I need you to stay", Dillon hints at a less clichéd, though equally commonly-held, human emotion than the "boy meets girl, girl leaves boy" formula. Brilliantly put together, the moments of silence carry as much power as those of melody. 'Plastic Pre-Flight Seats', a possible single, and 'Replace Me', a powerful outro and source of the album's name, are other stand-out tracks.
If there are any question marks over this album, it's whether or not the public at large will devour it with the same fervour as devote fans. Dillon's unique voice and quirky lyrics may not be too accessible to all, and a breakthrough to the mainstream may be tricky (although, of course, such a thing is not necessarily the best thing for the music, anyway).
'Puddle City Racing Lights' is a delight. Though unquestionably tinged with sadness and emotion, the record somehow carries an overall feeling of optimism in the face of this sadness. An album that sounds like running defiantly through pouring rain.