Mood Swings by Brian O'Neal

In 1994, Bean's musical vision prompted him to relocate to Atlanta to establish his own production company, BCO Media, Inc. Committed to the advancement of music and arts, Bean donates his time and talent to the artistic community. He has worked closely with some of Atlanta's most talented new Underground Spoken Word Performing Artists and Musicians. Realizing the important role that the arts play in the cultural expression of this generation, Bean has dedicated himself to ensuring that such valuable channels remain accessible.

As his musical career expanded, Bean manifested his versatility by becoming innovative in the areas of writing, producing, arranging and performing, always testing the limits of his creativity. His melodic creations bridge the gaps between generations, social classes and musical genres.

Over the past 20 years, Bean's hard work, determination, raw talent and creative energy has enabled him to refine his craft, giving birth to eclectic musical gems that promise to enchant his listening audience for years to come.

Bean credits his Grandmother Daisy O'Neal for both influencing and nurturing his musical endeavors. Brian O'Neal is a truly talented musician whose compositions resonate that there is no limit to musical artistry. Listen to his work and enjoy the musical journey it will carry you on.

***** REVIEW *****

Mood Swings is a step into Jazz for a generation raised on Hip-Hop. Looped, syncopated beats that find their roots in Top 40 and Adult Contemporary R&B grooves. In the broadest sense, one could classify this music as "Easy Listening" or "Light Jazz." And true, this is an excellent album for candlelight and a smooth Cabernet, but that would be a failure on the listener's part to see the overflowing musical merits of this album. Brian O'Neal is a compositional monster. With what would seem to be a very limiting looped rhythm and harmonic structure, he is always adding and subtracting little counter melodies or doubling parts on other instruments and keeps things incredibly fresh and interesting throughout.

O'Neal has chops to spare too when placed behind a piano, using his improvisational abilities to stretch out the harmony and play with the time laid down by the rhythm section. But he never allows himself to become over indulgent or draw the listener away from the song with flashy solos. My only complaint for this album is that even the least discriminating ears, at times, become very aware of the fact that the music was recorded in large part using synthesizers. This is not to say that synths themselves are not a viable musical instrument, but in this setting it does not allow them to react to Brian's improvisations the way that a live band is capable of. With his immense talent, I would be very excited to hear what Brian could do with a room full of equally talented musicians. That said, this is an incredibly consistent album, which shows that Brian will be an artist to keep an eye on in the coming years.

by Brian Hull

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