Chased By Creatures - Rewriting History

Chased By Creatures

​Rewriting History
self-released; 2017

3.6 out of 5

By Corrine Cassels
​

Chased by Creatures is the recording name of Montreal-Canadian musician Cedric Melancon. His album Rewriting History features ten songs all written, performed and recorded himself. His sound could be described as alternative rock with a singer/songwriter feel.

The album started with “5 Years” which had a gentle piano a sad melody. There was a full two minutes of instrumental before the vocals started which caused a bit of a shocking contrast. Melancon has an interesting singing style. It’s almost a sing-song type feel with whispers and raspiness.

There’s a whole lot of emotion in his words and it oozes out with each syllable. I was thinking this unique style was specific for this track but it continued into the second song “A Different Frame of Mind.” The lyrics are poetic and metaphorical and filled to the brim with feeling. Lines like “I’ve been trying to bury the feelings before they even die” are sung with a lot of passion which gives off a very dramatic, almost theatrical vibe.

I liked the track “Old Lovers (and a Whiskey Bottle)” which had no chorus, just line after line of pain and angst. Melancon has a way with words and lines like “I want to feel what it’s like to be solved like a riddle. Without a clue” which really made me want to love his style but it came off as a little too heavy for me in most songs. “Don’t Worry” was very whispery and dark but then took an aggressive turn with drums that were a little too loud for the song. It felt disconnected and scattered but that could have been the intention.

The tracks “One by One,” “How Lucky He Is” and “Tired of Me” were very similar and there’s no doubt that Melancon’s personal pain and loss are the subjects of each of his songs. At some points, it was too much emotion. If some of the pain could have been showcased with instrumental performances so that the vocals could take a more subdued role, I think at least in some tracks that would have been helpful. The drama of the vocals got a little distracting.

“This Town” had a cool funky beat and almost a Spanish sort of vibe which I really enjoyed. But the aggression in the vocals was again distracting. They were more understated in “Mountains” and the final track “Let Me Be” which allowed me to appreciate his songwriting talent a bit more.

​Chased by Creatures possesses undeniable songwriting talent. I feel that if he were able to rein in the emotion just a tad in the vocal performance, it could be redistributed in the instrumental performances which felt a little lacking. I still enjoyed Rewriting History partly because it felt so raw and personal like you were peeking in on Melancon’s diary without permission. I think with a little tweaking and fine tuning he could have something really special. I will definitely check out future work.

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