There’s something special happening with Peter Donovan and his enviable Community Theatre. At its essence these the new 11 song album highlights the artists prolific touch. Dig deeper and you’ll yearn for the community this collection boasts.
An ensemble of Seattles finest vocalists gave their skills to this project. Altogether it presents as a retrospect of Donovan’s world, as the various performance conjure a history of experience unique to this place. The microcosms of America might represent 20 different countries on a different continent, but here it’s an all bound together under one contentious flag. Still, there’s a relatability that ties us together, and a big part of that is our connection to pop culture.
Donovan lives on the other side of the coin, flaunting indie underground influences known to trend towards a western Nashville hue. In that manner the first two tracks could draw comparisons to Wilco, Dawes, and Counting Crows.
Some fancy guitar work on songs like I Don’t Live Here Anymore recall the legacy of Van Morrison and even nod to an admiration for Allman Brothers style jam culture. Community Theatre is relentlessly groovy, as Donovan’s band of merry agents keep it in the pocket while mantaining a delectable fluidity throughout. Nothing about this feels boxed in. The music feels classic in a way that is refreshing.
The most important trait, though, has to be Donovans voice. An acquired taste for some, but his rough broken delivery just happens to be the kind of thing we look for. It has some rustic wear but still manages to muster the notes on a dime. Its a soulful affect, an attribute to a bygone era we miss miserably.
The Wild Is Calling 