b.d. Gottfried - Through the Dog's Eyes (2017)

In 2017 – bd Gottfried is an edgy, uncompromised writer releasing his 8th solo album entitled: Through The Dog’s Eyes – produced by Juno Winner Siegfried Meier. With airplay in over a dozen countries he continues to work in an unrestricted style with lyrical depth that will always take you on a journey. Having a varied working background as a touring musician and session player.Working in the past with a vast array of artists such as PinoPalladino (Pete Townsend, John Mayer Trio). Breen Laboeuf (Celine Dion, April Wine). Greg Dechert (Bad Company, David Gilmour), to name a few.

The first track on this release, “Something You Weren’t” gets underway by wasting no time rocking, but not in the hard vein, it’s more of a mixture of light and dark textures with just the right vocal approach. The road is long and he has a way of taking you down it without boring. The lyrics are witty and cunning, leaving it to the thinking listener. It’s a good opener that sets up the next track “Crosshairs” in unison fashion. This isn’t as catchy as the previous number, but rocks even harder in place. David Bowie meets David Byrne is what it sounds like. “Blame It On The Money” also sounds like David Bowie, but it’s more in the lyrics than anywhere else. This is a very good track with a winning chorus that should get some attention from any 80s music lover, but it doesn’t date itself that way either, as he manages to blend a modern edge into it. This isn’t easy to top, as it’s one of the better tracks on the disc. “Eye Of Time” follows in a similar vein, and plays even deeper into the David Bowie influence with some Ziggy Stardust thrown in. These are all compliments that help point out where his musical taste lies. They’re epic tracks in-their own right, and this one features piano.

On “Frequencies” he starts to get into his own zone and it comes out consistent and clean, but it sounds more electronically carried. It’s a good track but lacks something the others don’t. “Breakaway” is a nice little number with some blues guitar to keep it interesting, and a lower register vocal that helps get away from the similarities found thus far. At the end of the day it is another cool song, one of the top three highlights. It’s much better than the following piece “Reformation” which once again plays out like an homage to the 80s. There’s almost a gothic appeal to it, if you find that appealing. The songs all work in different ways to mold together a thread that you can follow with ease, and that is a testament to him as a musician, and if you like the drums and a lot of percussive values in general, this is where it peaks. But it isn’t over, as the swear pipe sounding vocals that remind of Pink Floyd comes in the shape of “Do We Have Love” and it becomes evident that this album is a progressive work not unlike that of Roger Waters just as much as it reflects Bowie. Put that together and you get a sonic experience like no other. And the last two numbers bring it all together for a killer release.