Deviant Nation : Steve Smith : This Town

Steve Smith - This Town

Label: G.A.S. Records

By: diesel
Jan 17 08

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Who is Steve Smith? Many may not know the answer to that question unless they have heard "Days Go By," from the now-defunct London group Dirty Vegas. Steve Smith is a respected DJ and also the man who created the song that was heard everywhere from dance clubs to Mitsubishi commercials (anyone remember the Dave Chappelle skit?). What most people do not know is that Steve Smith did not originally plan on writing that song as a dance track or for that matter forming Dirty Vegas.

"Days Go By" was written by Steve Smith as an acoustic song for an ex-girlfriend that had captured his heart. The song took a twist one day as he was sitting with a DJ friend and their producer in 1999 and decided to play the song. The result turned into a new band forming - and an up tempo version of the song that soon would be heard all over the world.

While fronting Dirty Vegas, Steve Smith continued to write passionate acoustic songs for himself thinking that one day he would release them. After years of touring the world, and the release of a sophomore album that did not meet the industries expectations, the band went their separate ways. Steve Smith soon reunited with his ex-girlfriend. They would marry and make a giant move from London to Boston, Massachusetts, a city he always admired. The move was part of a calling Steve Smith had felt, a calling for him to start writing his own music once again.

This Town was created due to the calling, coincidence, and dreams Steve Smith experienced.

Starting off the CD is "This Town," with dialog from actor John Savage (most notably from The Deer Hunter). John Savage's spoken word really hit me. I have always enjoyed hearing what seasoned adults say about life. John Savage talks about life the way it was told to him: "Sometimes it's hard to figure out how to have life. Guess what? It's not up to us." The piano accompanying the acoustic guitar makes this speech a little deeper and inspirational. Midway through the song, Savage says, "Sometimes being a genius is just getting up in the morning..." followed by a sigh. Steve Smith picks up where John Savage left off and sings about the place called home.

"Restless" is a nice pop rock friendly track I could see being favored by fans of 90's alternative bands. I myself was not too into it. "Universe" has an afternoon barroom jam feel to it with lyrics about live and love. I got a kick out of the lyric, "Frankenstein has found his bride." Hopeless romantics take note of this song, as it will make your mate swoon.

Harmonica, and what sounds like banjo, makes the track "Morning Jane." This instrumental track also changes the music style up a tad, adding a little more electronic style to it. I really enjoyed listening to the jam. I feel it could be in a movie one day.

Choice track "Smile," dedicated to Steve Smith's late father, came to him in a dream. Joining Steve Smith on this homage is violinist Jay Ungar to make this a truly beautiful track. Jay Unger happened to write a score that in turn was Steve Smith's father's favorite piece. Steve Smith came upon Jay Ungar playing at a local church and asked him to play on this track. This song is dream and coincidence all in one. I am sure his father is smiling right now.

"That Town" is technically the close of the CD. The song sounds almost like a remix of "This Town," but it is not noted anywhere on the CD insert. The song has more of a techno-pop feel at the beginning a la Chemical Brothers and ends with something you might dance out to at an Ibiza club.

As an added treat, there are two bonus songs on the CD, the first being "Late Nights and Street Fights." This song was the main theme for Fox's now canceled series Standoff. If you have not heard this song, you should check it out. I like it a lot as it reminds me of some of the high energy rock bands out there that are not plagued on the recurring radio waves.

For those of you who were curious to hear the original version of "Days Go By," it might sound like you will not go unfulfilled, as it is the last track on the CD. This is the Steve Osbourne Mix, but still is much different than that of the Dirty Vegas version. I much prefer the acoustic over the overplayed techno. For a song that was a dance club sensation, I have a feeling that more people were listening to the beats over the lyrics. Now that the dance clubs are closed and your clothes are sweat free, it is time to actually listen to the song for what it was intended to be: a love song.

Kudos to Steve Smith for not throwing in the towel once Dirty Vegas fell off the charts. This CD was great to listen to and I will be listening to it many times over. If you find yourself a fan of bands like Coldplay, Death Cab For Cutie, or even Travis, you should check out what Steve Smith has created. Underneath this DJ lies a musician who had a calling to record this CD, a dream about one of the songs, and the enthusiasm to go through with it. These are the types of musicians I respect.