Danny Malone

Austin’s Danny Malone is your classic singer/songwriter – a heart-on-his-sleeve hopeless romantic who bares it all and then some on his four song EP, Baby Bleu. But Malone’s songs would be nothing without the rich arrangements and assortment of musicians who make up his revolving cast of characters posing as a backing band.



I can’t breathe, I can’t even see, I’m begging you please because my fingers are freezing.

With a whistle-worthy hook provided by trumpets, “Silence” recalls fellow Austinites Spoon and is simply one of the best pop songs I’ve heard in some time. I’m convinced that the horn solo is indie rock’s new trick to writing a hit worthy pop song. Feist’s iGen anthem “1234” and Spoon’s “The Underdog” come to mind.

“Swimming Pools” is toe-tapping rock, the sort that litters the Saddle Creek Records catalog. And is that a freakin' vibraphone? Amazing. The bouncy backbeat Malone brings in for the chorus makes the walk home after a long night of drinking more tolerable, because a good song can make every hangover easier to deal with.

When I wake up, Oh I’m so confused, still can’t find my shoes.



Malone’s music is painfully honest, littered with "I"s and "You"s. That can wear thin after some time, but if it’s what you’re into it’s not that bad. “Lucky Break” is a bit too introspective, too slow and adult oriented pop for my tastes. Without his backing band on “Baby Bleu,” Malone sounds confidant yet still vulnerable.

At four songs long, Baby Bleu is the very definition of a tease. One can only hope Malone has more music up his sleeve, more songs in his bag, and more hits in the making.

Wishin I was somewhere lost with you, and not lost without you Baby Bleu.

Visit Danny Malone on myspace here.