CD Review
Artist: Thriving Ivory
Title: Self Titled
Label: Wind-Up Records
Release Date: August 26^th 2008

Reviewed By: Leah Mertz (Edmonton/Calgary Correspondent - Canada)

Since being signed in 2007, up and coming band Thriving Ivory has already garnered almost one million views on MySpace and thousands of devoted fans from all over North America. Hailing from the San Francisco Bay-area, Thriving Ivory pays good homage to their laid back California vibes. However it is not all sunny and sweet; the integration of lead singer Clayton Stroope's raw vocals creates a tasteful mesh of striking soft rock music.

Stroope's vocal styling is unlike anything you've ever heard before. My first impression had me drawing comparisons to Hedley's front man Jacob Hoggard, but upon further evaluation, his vocals seemed to mellow out along the path of Daniel Powter. Either way, as the album goes on, his voice seems to tribute the poetic stories told within each song. The first single ‘Angels on the Moon' is a heartfelt account dedicated to September 11^th 2001. The lyrics of this song, as well as many more on the album are written well and seem to hint they are just slightly ahead of the mainstream rhyming schemes that we hear far too often today. Each song is unique to its own and allows for plenty of interpretation; I was thrilled to have most of them complemented by the piano; it added so much more emotion and made it all the more a pleasure to listen to.   

The album's tracks seemed like they were well produced; they often had deep underlying string sections that added to the overall richness of the songs. However by the end of the album, it almost feels like you have just listened to one complete arrangement. The boys rarely play around with tempo, so it somewhat lacks unpredictability. With the attention span of our generation becoming narrower, keeping it fresh is a good asset to have for any artist these days. That being said, Thriving Ivory will undoubtedly have mass appeal. The songs are catchy and easy to sing along to. My favourite line on the album is from the track ‘For Heaven's Sake': Make every door your walk through a living work of art. With the release of their debut, Thriving Ivory has been given the door, now as they walk through it, the rest of us can satisfyingly enjoy the work of art they have created.  

Track listing:
1) Runaway
2) Angels on the Moon
3) Alien
4) Hey Lady
5) Twilight
6) Secret Life
7) Long Hallway With a Broken Light
8) Overrated
9) For Heaven's Sake
10) Unhappy
11) Light up Mississippi
12) Day of Rain