Album review: THE LAST DINOSAUR – Wholeness

Indie [Release date 23.10.20]

Music can move us in so many ways, filtering through our lives in both the subtle and the obvious. It can seem to be that ever-present soundtrack to our days, a faintly heard radio, the background music in television or something we put on as background music whilst working or doing the housework.

Though we might hear music a lot, playing it for pleasure to relax us or to lift us as we sing along to a favourite song, seldom do we really sit and listen intently, the colours and tones washing over and into our brains, firing our imagination and reaching into our soul.

The Last Dinosaur demand to be listened to. Really listened to. Although it may be relatively brief, clocking in at under a half hour, this new album stands as something that enthralls and turns casual curiosity into avid devotion. There is something in here that captivates both heart and mind in a way that very few manage, the seven tracks on display each drawing you in and stripping back layers of emotion that go way beyond the norm.

You feel as if you’re staring into the very soul of main man Jamie Cameron as he leaves raw nerve endings bare to the harsh gaze of the listener, managing to bring a depth of emotion and previously undiscovered colours.

There is pain, but it would be very wrong to get the impression that ‘Wholeness’ is maudlin as its most certainly not, a sense of imagination and hope runs through it and there’s always some delightful detail that guarantees a smile. Using both the traditional tools of vocals and instruments, the album also includes, amongst other things, field recordings to build up atmosphere, the effect wholly immersive.

From the opening notes of ‘Wholeness and the Implicate Order’ with its rolling piano and swelling strings and brass, the otherworldly yet familiar sounds of pylons join the fray as the track builds, setting the tone for the wildly inventive imagination herein. ‘In the Belly of the Whale’ mixes spoken word by Amy Acre, gentle piano and the sound of a typewriter keys to intoxicating effect and ‘Shower Song’ glories in its shuffling beat and pining vocals performed in a low whisper.

As you make your way through the album it would be wrong to over analyse each track as, whilst there is certainly Cameron’s own heart at the centre of each, the listener is led to draw their own resonant feelings amongst the myriad of sounds. The overall effect is both one of shared emotions and memories all whilst being intensely personal. A rare quality indeed.

‘Spirit of the Staircase’, with its haunting sax and dark, mysterious midnight jazz feel sounds like a lost track from the brilliant Gabriel Yared ‘Betty Blue’ soundtrack and the aptly named ‘Untitled Piece for Piano and Viola’ is a study in understated beauty.

The simple, yet beautifully pure, sound of children playing accompanies the melancholic and fragile ‘Errant Child’ and the equally breathtaking ‘The Wheelbarrow’ draws things to a serene close, the notes fade whilst the memory lingers long in the mind. Its creation may have been a very hard and torturous one for the artist but its one that was certainly worth persevering with and sharing. A very personal and artistic triumph, ‘Wholeness’ shimmers and dazzles like no other. Truly outstanding. *****

Review by Paul Monkhouse

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

Next session: Sunday 1 December

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 November 2024.

UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 29 October 2024.

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com

Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024

ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)

Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)