On his new album PTO singer-songwriter Dave Keener deals with everyday chores, appliances acting up, and craving for a relationship. The songs were "road tested" at his Songwriter Deathmatches appearances in Brooklyn. Getting up on stage and make people listen to a brand new song can be scary, but Keener can always rely on his way with words. He can cram a lot of them in a song, but somehow it never feels crowded.
He has a good eye for his surroundings, always on the look out for something (or someone) to write about, with compassion (Old Hero, Someone, Mmm), but also with a sense of humour (Labor Of Love Song). The oddball rhythm smothers the bubbling frustration about a "smart" toaster and a fridge with a mind of its own in Internet Of Things. It is actually quite hilarious and it will strike a chord with fans of Jonathan Richman and They Might Giants. Now that he is getting older he decided to try his hand at writing a ballad and the smooth 70s vibe Wait Till You Love Someone, with call-and-response vocals thrown for good measure, proofs that it can be done on a shoestring budget.
Keener is well aware that he will never make enough money to give up his day job - it is the subject matter of the album's closing track Put Me With The People - but PTO ("paid/personal time off") will surely break even and maybe a little extra that he can set aside for the next one.
PTO is released on Keener Boy Records. Buy it from his website. Release date: May 29.
Tracks:- Labor Of Love Song
- Love To Me
- Old Hero
- Hidey Hole
- Internet Of Things
- Wait Till You Love Someone
- Someone
- Mmm
- Being With You
- Put Me With The People
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