This Delicate Thing We've Made

Album Review

Previously the forte of prog rockers, hair metallers, and hip-hop MCs, the idea of the double album has recently been embraced by the pop world, with Christina Aguilera (Back to Basics), Beyoncé (I Am...Sasha Fierce), and even Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates (Go Your Own Way), unable to restrict their creative flow to just one disc. Following his split with Columbia Records after ten years and 25 million sales together, former Savage Garden frontman Darren Hayes has used his new-found freedom to become the latest unlikely artist to boldly attempt the ambitious concept with his third solo album, This Delicate Thing We've Made. Clocking in at a near-two-hour running time, Hayes' first release through his own Powdered Sugar label could quite easily have become an exercise in self-indulgence, but luckily, he has plenty to offer both sonically and lyrically. Written during the period of his civil partnership with his animator/music video director husband, and his subsequent public coming out announcement, the majority of its 25 tracks eschew the dark and tortured themes of predecessor The Tension & the Spark in favor of a more optimistic approach which revels in his newly discovered happiness, particularly on the likes of "Who Would Have Thought?" a brooding trip-hop-inspired co-write with Guy Chambers, which comes complete with a chiming wedding bell middle-eight; the shimmering Enya-esque choral-led "The Only One," and the joyous new wave pop of lead single "On the Verge of Something Wonderful." Not that Hayes has become averse to addressing more heavy-handed issues, either, as evident on the politically charged, robotic synth-funk of "Bombs Up in My Face," the new age waltz of "Neverland," which tackles the subject of domestic violence, and the campfire sing-along of "The Great Big Disconnect" which covers everything from weapons of mass destruction to AIDS in Africa. The shimmering electro-pop that he so convincingly pulled off on his sophomore album remains the album's prevalent sound, the highlights of which are the Paul Van Dyk-inspired, six-minute trance-lite epic "Casey," the Giorgio Moroder-esque bubbling synth pop of "Step Into the Light," and the Middle Eastern-flavored "A Conversation with God." But elsewhere, Hayes takes full advantage of the opportunity to showcase his more adventurous side, shifting from Prince-inspired falsetto funk ("Me, Myself and I") to Scissor Sisters-style glam rock ("Lucky Town") to melancholic country-pop ("Maybe") to a cappella gospel ("Walk Away"), all with consummate ease. Of course, the album's sprawling nature means that it might be a bit of a slog for anyone other than hardcore fans, while the schmaltzy tendencies of Savage Garden unfortunately rear their head on the slushy and dreary acoustic ballads "I Just Want You to Love Me," "A Hundred Challenging Things a Boy Can Do," and "Words." But strip away these misguided ventures into lounge territory and you're left with an inventive, seductive, and slightly eccentric record which only furthers Hayes' surprising reinvention as one of pop's most unpredictable mavericks. ~ Jon O'Brien, Rovi