I Love What We Do＜限定盤＞

Geoffrey OConnor has made a name for himself among the synth pop cognoscenti with a string of albums that juxtapose warm, heartfelt vocals with icy keys, none better than 2021s For as Long as I Can Remember, where he teamed with an impressive cast of female vocalists to craft a sophisticated pop classic. On 2025s I Love What We Do, he does something similar, only this time he brought in a bunch of musicians to help expand his usual sound and give it some warmth. Along with the usual synthesizers, there are real strings, acoustic guitars, pianos, harps, and musical saw filling out the arrangements and giving OConnor -- and gust vocalists -- a very lush, more organic backdrop to emote in front of. OConnor makes the most of it, penning a batch of songs that plumb the depths of melancholy and loneliness, while also leaving just a bit of space for the slightest glimmer of hope. Its the work of a romantic in search of true love, thwarted and bruised, but still in there fighting. A song title like "Im So Lonely I Could Fall In Love" gives the game away somewhat, and its impossible not to be swept up in the elegiac mood as harps twinkle, a gentle guitar strums, strings thrum, and backing singers harmonize gently. Its breathtaking and only one of many songs that are destined to stop anyone who ever had a heart dead in their tracks. OConnor has always been good at this kind of trick, but the expanded instrumentation and inspired songwriting take things past heartfelt to heartbreaking, and then to the point where one might need to keep a resuscitator handy. Luckily there are a few songs that -- musically, at least -- bring a sliver of sunshine into the glimmering gloom. "Lets Make Love Feel Good Again" is a loping disco track that sports some nice bongos and twanging guitar, and "I Love What We Do" coasts along on sweeping waves of vocal harmonies, harp trills, and flutes as OConnor delivers his lightest, most nimble vocal. They give the record just the right amount of balance and help vault I Love What We Do nearly to the level of For as Long as I Can Remember, meaning that it is as fine a singer/songwriter record with synths as anyone is liable to find in the 2020s, or anytime. ~ Tim Sendra