Murray Attaway: "Tense Music Plays" (2025) CD Review

Murray Attaway is known for his work as singer and guitarist in Guadalcanal Diary, a seriously cool band from the 1980s (if you are unfamiliar with that band, do yourself a favor and start digging into the catalogue). After that band broke up, he released his first solo album, In Thrall, in 1993. He then recorded a second solo album a year or two later, which was to be titled Delirium, Or How I Spent My Thirties, but it was never released. And now, thirty years later, he has released a new solo album. Fans of Guadalcanal Diary and his first solo album are going to love this new disc. And it should bring in a whole lot of new fans as well. It features all original material, written by Murray Attaway.

"I'm a lost soul from another time," he sings on the album's opening track, "Breath." Maybe so, and I bet enough people feel that way that a large audience can relate. The music is in the pop rock realm, featuring some strong guitar work and an appealing vocal performance. It's a song of pain and struggle, with some striking lines, such as "I try to wear a halo/But it just passes through me." There is an interesting play on lines from "Amazing Grace," with him singing, "I once was lost, but never found/Was blind but cannot see." Robert Schmid plays bass and drums on this track. That's followed by "Stars Behind The Moon," which has an acoustic, softer sound, but a somewhat darker vibe, as he sings of "pain and violence." It features some wonderful work by Ana Balka on violin. Check out these lyrics: "Cry from the heart of an earthbound soul/That could chase the devil to the deepest hole/I thought it was stars behind the moon/But it was just someone in a lonely room." This is one of my personal favorite tracks. It brings me to the edge of tears, and I can't even explain why. Something about the picture it paints, something about the way it places us inside it, I suspect. And of course it could be that violin work. Then in the second half, the energy suddenly increases, as does the passion of his vocal performance. It's a powerful moment in a captivating song.

Murray Attaway returns to a rock vibe with "Hole In The Ground." There is an alluring darkness to this track too, with a raw delivery full of attitude. This one too has lyrics that stand out, such as these: "Listen while I tell you about a dream you had/It was midnight on a frozen lake/The ice gave way and you fell in and drowned/Cry like a killer, smile like a clown/Might as well jump in a hole in the ground." And his voice is reaching us from the edge of that hole. We hear the difference between what is inside someone and what is shown, and we wonder if either is real. He then goes back to an acoustic sound on "Better Days," a folk sound. On this song, these lines stand out: "Close your eyes and we'll pretend/That we can still be all we've been/And we can stay always in better days." I love lyrics that are somehow simultaneously cheerful and depressing, as those are. This is another of my favorites. In addition to excellent lyrics, it contains some really good guitar work. "One more time/We'll dance and shout/Before the lights/Have flickered out." We are all on the edge, aren't we? Let's dance and shout while we can, before the end. "And we'll say, 'I'll see you in better days.'" I love this song. It's one I can listen to several times in a row, one I can turn to for some kind of comfort. It was written by Murray Attaway and Layla Attaway.

"I guess I dream too much/That's what people say/But even when I'm dreaming/I'm never far away," Murray Attaway sings in "Never Far Away." This one kind of quietly grabs me. There is something wonderfully raw and immediate about its delivery, probably in the fact that the guitar and vocals do all the work here, like a demo, or like some of Billy Bragg's work. "And if I go walking off alone/It's 'cause I'm worried something's wrong/And I'm just trying to get back home." That's followed by "Old Christmas," which has a cool, menacing rhythm. "Silky voice says, now you're mine/Deep in the dirt/In jars of clay/Lost in the earth/Hidden from the day." Wow, this album is captivating, but this track especially is, the way it feels like it's stalking you, playing with you, knowing it has you the whole time. There is some particularly good percussion here. This song contains a nod to "Swing Low Sweet Chariot." "Please let me stay alive/Woman in the back seat screaming drive, drive, drive."

"Stranger" contains a vocal performance that commands our attention, supported by some good guitar work. "And every day's a long, hard ride/Miracles are dreams and water/Rumor has it just inside/Is a stranger." Dreams are a recurring idea on this album. This track also has a surprising nod to "Hey Ho Nobody Home." The album then concludes with "You Were There," which comes on strong, a good rock song. "Nothing to fear, no cause for alarm/Well, I didn't know how blind I was/Wrapped in shades of arrogance/Barely struggling to breathe." This one might remind you a bit of R.E.M. "Doors are closing in your face/You got to get out of this awful place/I don't have an answer/Only thing I found/Was when I was down/You were there."

CD Track List

1. Breath
2. Stars Behind The Moon
3. Hole In The Ground
4. Better Days
5. Never Far Away
6. Old Christmas
7. Stranger
8. You Were There

Tense Music Plays was released on May 9, 2025. I hope this album signals a new beginning for Murray Attaway's music career, and that we won't have to wait too long before he records another album.