Regular Columnists

Artist: Shaan Sharma
Album: "The All New End"
CD Review: Genre: Pop
Sounds Like: Take That
Technical Grade: 9
Production/Musicianship Grade: 9
Commercial Value: 9
Overall Talent Level: 9
Songwriting Skills: 8
Performance Skill: 9
Best Songs: The Ground, 20 years
Weakness: Song titles not easily identifiable and difficult to recall.
CD Review: Who says that commercial Pop/Rock is dead? Shaan Sharma, a singer/songwriter/guitarist/model from Wayzata, Minnesota, proves that the genre is alive and kicking. Armed with a smooth tenor and refined guitar playing skills, Shaan skillfully blends his pop sensibilities with his rock impulses to create a commercially viable project that should easily catch the attention of the MTV generation and the music supervisors of the O.C.

The most commercial track on the project, "The Ground," has one of the best hooks that I've heard this year. It is one of those rare songs that contains an inseperable bridge and chorus that you eagerly anticipate with each listen while building up the anxiety with driving guitar lines that breathe life and add dimension to the track. He also has a nice follow-up in the thunderous opening track, "20 Years," which will qualify him as a legitimate musical threat.

Once this EP gets into the hands of the public, it will not be an all new end, but rather an all new beginning.

Advice: Tighten up the choruses; they are strong, but could be stronger (i.e. song titles more memorable).

http://www.shaansharma.com/