Portal

If I were to judge this record purely on the musical talent of its involved parties, the complete sound of the disc or the surface pieces that make up any musical recording then this would be a negative review. But Portal’s energy and emotion do not come through on this CD. Vocalist Kenton Thomas is bland, dry, and two-dimensional. The rhythm section of Kevin Hoskin on bass and Blair Fix on drums and percussion is barely noticeable. The record is flat. But before I could write the disc off entirely I had to acknowledge the obvious skill and emotive pull of the lyrics. I really had to listen to the foundations of each and every song. There is some huge songwriting talent in this band. So what went wrong in the packaging of these delicately crafted songs? Who knows for sure but I suspect that the independent nature of the recording, and thus the bottom line of the project, is to blame. I hope most listeners will dedicate the time it takes to understand Portal. The CD’s artwork also deserves some praise. Check out the slick outward package. Nice for an indie record.