Dust is the first solo album by singer/ songwriter/ guitarist Rob Thompson from the Welsh band The Storys. While the most recent album by The Storys Luck (which was released at the same time as Thompson's debut) could potentially turn out to be their swan song, Dust opens up a new chapter in the story of this wonderfully talented musician.
Backed by two of his Storys band mates, Alan Thomas on keys and Andy Collins on bass, along with co-producer Tim Hamill helping out on drums and keys, the transition to solo artist feels like a natural one for Thompson mainly due to the fact that he hasn't strayed too far musically from the airy, textured sounds made by the band he co-founded in 2003. The gradual, layered guitar buildup on the title track, the infectious acoustic driven melodies on "Could You Come Around?" and "Standing Still" are distinctively Thompson and yet they also wouldn't sound out of place on a Storys album either. However, where he really steps out and demonstrates his unique skills as both a songwriter and a player is on tracks like "The Director's Cut" and "The Ending Credits". These two compositions both clock in at just over seven minutes each and it's an absolute joy to hear how these arrangements slowly unfold. "The Director's Cut" is full of some splendid sounding church organ and piano playing from Thomas, while the last two minutes contain hands down some of the best guitar work of Thompson's career. He begins his solo with a nice David Gilmour-esque passage and as the repetitive piano melody and shimmering organ swells begin to intensify so does his solo which climaxes in a sheer frenzy of notes. "The Ending Credits" see's Thompson turning in another wonderful emotion filled vocal performance amid a stirring string arrangement, before he eventually rips into one of his trademark solos, which also includes some cool interstellar guitar textures as well.
If you're a fan of Rob Thompson's work in The Storys then you're definitely going to want to pick up a copy of Dust, not to mention that with both Luck and Dust being released at the same time it's a no brainer for the fans 'cause in the end they're getting a double shot of this multi-talented artist.
Track Listing
1) Dust
2) Could You Come Around?
3) It All Makes Sense In The End
4) I Can't Tune In
5) The Director's Cut
6) Standing Still
7) Watching How All The Dust's Drawn To The TV
8) The Ending Credits
9) Dust (radio edit)
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