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You may came into hearing UniversalDice’s new singles “Last Prayer” and “One of Many, One” cold. You won’t “leave” that way. Gerry Dantone, guitarist Bob Barcus, and bassist Sam Cimino team on this pair of songs to deliver musical performances capable of converting any serious music fan into a believer. Long Island has hosted scores of exemplary bands and musicians for scores of years and UniversalDice stand among their ranks.
“Last Prayer” begins with an almost electric folk guitar strum, in some ways, but it’s far more modern than that. Perhaps it reveals the song’s demo form when Dandone originally laid it down with an acoustic guitar. Every musical element is in place from the outset as Dandone and the other musicians lead listeners through deeply personal pain and one man’s impassioned plea. The drums, Dandone on them, along with vocals, songwriting, and production among other sundry endeavors, set a perfect tone.
Guitarist Bob Barcus, however, blows the song wide open near its end with a tough, gut-wrenching guitar. It never overpowers what came before but, instead, puts an emphatic exclamation point on the single. The careful hand each of the musician use to shape this track is in full evidence here as Barcus’ considered attack never shows a hint of overplaying.
You won’t find any overplaying in the second single as well. “One of Many, One” starts off with more of a stride than the aforementioned song but, once again, these talented musicians temper their approach. It isn’t even close to steamrolling listening. Melding classic rock attributes with a modern approach sounds easier than it is when the goal is to emerge with something unique and full.
They accomplish that here. The lyric puts the icing on the cake as Dantone fearlessly pours out his patriotic heart. It’s a song expressing his ideal of what the American experience should be in light of the then current Iraq war. The song’s title, also the title of the same album, hails from the United States’ original motto.
Yet there’s no chest thumping or bloated music. Dantone’s decision to open the song with a military inspired snare pattern strikes an impactful note. It is not Thor’s hammer, however, bashing listeners into submission. Anyone looking for that sort of experience is advised to look elsewhere. Instead, it joins the other instruments in a seamless mosaic hitting all the critical points without ever bashing away. It heightens the song’s inherent drama.
There’s drama aplenty here. Music, however, is an affirmative experience, as all arts are. Dantone is obviously in tune with that experience without ever allowing it to make him sound preachy or arrogant. “Last Prayer” and “One of Many, One” hail from the band’s debut 25 years ago and their third album of the same name six years later, respectively. Re-releases aren’t something band’s love to do, so when they do, pay attention. This is well worth paying attention because it’s music from the heart and head and there’s no stronger possible recommendation
Jennifer Munoz
