“The Trouble With Flying”
from the album The Trouble With Flying
2009
iTunes
Orba Squara, which is basically New York-based musician Mitch Davis, is one of those musical acts who is hard to hate. Even if one is not a fan of bouncy uplifting pop songs which is Davis’ forte, one can’t ignore the fact he is a talented musician.
On his past recordings, Davis has played numerous instruments and not just your normal ones either. A few of the more unique instruments he has tinkered with include: mandolin, sitar, violin, glockenspiel, and xylophone.
Davis’ love for more organic sounds continues as he plays a bunch of those above mentioned instruments on his new album entitled The Trouble With Flying. The 13-track recording is the follow up to his debut Sunshyness which was most notable for “Perfect Timing (This Morning),” a song that was played on a popular iPhone commercial.
Even though the sound of both discs is similar, there is a significant difference now — The Trouble With Flying is a more consistent collection of songs and it is a nice step forward for Davis. The biggest improvement on The Trouble With Flying is that it works better as an album because it is more theme-oriented than singles-oriented. (Sunshyness had eight other tracks licensed for movie and television projects.)
The theme of Davis’ newest release is best encapsulated in the title track. The song’s lyrics deal with man’s tendency to miss out on life and experience different things because of our fear of trying something new or our depending on technology too much.
The track’s words become more even special because of the engaging Spanish-Portuguese vibe a prominent viola gives. Surprisingly, there is also a unique bluesy sound to it, thanks to the appearance of classic rock guitarist/singer Billy Squier.
The title track isn’t the only highlight though. The opening track, “Treasure Map,” and “Picture Perfect” are simple yet fun songs that feature catchy melodies and bouncy acoustic guitars while still tackling the album’s themes.
The biggest drawback to The Trouble With Flying though lays in Davis’ vocals which don’t vary much from song to song. His high pitch works fine on the more uptempo numbers but it detracts a bit from the quieter ones. The best example of this is “Millionaires” which ends up sounding like a children’s ditty or a mediocre Broadway show number.
Even so, there is a good flow from song to song on The Trouble With Flying and its lyrical content and use of unique musical instruments is intriguing and rewarding.