Monday, October 24, 2005
REVIEW: Dennis Kyne: All We Want Is The Truth!
By Keith Hannaleck, 10/1/2005
Besides rockin’ down the house, he gets his point across really well on this CD...
Artist: Dennis Kyne
Title: I’m Not Resisting
What happens to a man that is in the Army for 15 years and he gets out five years before retirement, and then decides to start offering the truth about the military to those that will listen? If you can deal with it all the bullshit the military deals out for 20 years, you get to walk away from it and collect a paycheck for doing nothing the rest of your life. Well there has to be a damned good reason for a person to pack it all in with 75% of the commitment already fulfilled. Listen to this CD for the answers.
Dennis Kyne is one such person that turned his back on a fully benefited military retirement because his conscience would not allow him to see it through until the end. He needed to start again somewhere else, and start with the truth first. I believe in national security and our military but I do not support some of the senseless wars the U.S. has waged.
Kyne left behind 15 years of sacrifice to expose some of the awful truths about our military in a book called "Support The Truth," a play on words from the commonly used "support our troops" motto. And now we have a musical version of his story, well part of it, in I’m Not Resisting. He communicates his tale through some hearty rock tracks. Some of the subject matter obviously pertains to his protesting activities and ensuing arrests, depicted on the cover of this CD. Switching between the acoustic and electric guitar, Kyne makes his way through 11 tracks of emotional fist waving at our government and military. In a bit of irony, our government wants us to support our troops but does not think twice about putting our brothers and sisters in harms way, even using them as guinea pigs in some cases. Kyne sings about all of this and the tragedies of veterans coming home changed forever. Some are insane and living like dogs on the street. These are the realities of war and our government likes to turn its head to this heartbreak. Kyne is not going to let it slide; he wants everyone to know what the truth is.
Besides rockin’ down the house, he gets his point across really well on this CD. If he is playing an acoustic number like the opener "All We Want Is The Truth," sounding like Iggy Pop every step of the way, he has this high level of energy that bites like a pit bull and it hangs on without letting go. His message is so important that there is no time to waste in any song, and he makes the best use of his time. This is what you call optimizing your moment in the sun. Five of the tracks are crackling with spontaneity. They were recorded live at KZSU Stanford Live. The rest of the tracks sound live off the floor in the studio as well. The entire album has that feel, that gritty edge and undying tension that you would need in conveying such a message. This element turns out to be Kyne’s most reliable friend. He has a decent voice and his guitar playing is above average. It is a good thing because there is no way that this recording would have the meaning it does without the piss n’ vinegar of a hard-edged voice and some rockin’ six-string to drive it home.
He has some great support along the way from his comrades Shawn Packer (guitar), James Bradford (bass), Ryan Hoffman (drums), and Ward Reilly (percussion on track 1). You cannot make music this good without a little help and nobody knows better than Kyne.
Best tracks for my money are "All We Want Is The Truth," "Scratched Out In Soul" and "Whiskey." For me these are the songs that define Kyne’s purpose and meaning for making this CD in the first place. This CD is jam packed with powerful eye opening messages and good music to back it all up, when does it get any better or more in your face than that?
© Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck
September 30, 2005
01. All We Want is the Truth (3:44)
02. Curbside (3:26)
03. All In (4:22)
04. What's the Purpose? (3:21)
05. Playin' it Cool (3:20)
06. Corner (3:52)
07. Scratched Out in Soul (0:16)
08. Whiskey (4:44)
09. Cut Around Sally (4:09)
10. Sittin' In Tally (3:50)
11. Hangin' (2:38)