Last Charge of the Light Horse is a piece with a gentle vibe and rock undertones; it has a colorful sound that is reflected in the cover art. The art on the cover is shaped like the visual representations of sound. They are shaped liked waves and scribbles of sound. It’s a great way to represent the style of the music that they produce as well. They produce a sound which is hard to define just as the visual representation of the music is hard to grasp. The genre of this song is very hard to pinpoint. At the beginning of the song you think it is rock then the sound gradually becomes gentler and softer. It becomes gentle to the point which the genre is hard to distinguish. This band experiments with genre and does not stick to one style. They keep the music always interesting in this way and make their work hard to define.
This range of emotions began with Last Charge of the Light Horse in 2004 it was created so that song-writer Jean-Paul’s music to be heard. The musical style of the band is always changing and this is evident when listening to “What if.” The song is hard to place as far as genre goes. The group begans as a group of three: Vest, and a father and son, Artie and A.J. Riegger. Now the group has four members: drummer Shawn Murray, lead guitarist Bob Stander and Bassist Pemberton Roach.
The cover to this piece is interesting to say the least. It features an array of colors and lines. They seem random at first glance; however, there is a pattern to the lines. They appear to be a representation of sound in some form. The words on the image are simple; the same bold print in all capital letters is used on the cover. Perhaps this is done so as to not detract from what the main focus should be the lines that represent sound.
It has a distinct beginning sound. Like the beat of a heart a bump, bump, bump with the accompanying lyrics, “finally free of the rattle in my chest.” A soft rock sound is what the song begins with. It has a shrill almost percussioninterruption that rises and falls between lyrics. Then a sound of Maracas chimes in and a female accompanying voice adds a new layer to the song. A still gentler vibe enters at this point in the song. Then the song trails off to the end.
The song replicates a beating heart and the lyrics reflect that as well as the cover art. The colorful and strange cover art brings to life this feeling which they are aiming to achieve. A feeling of undefinable life, it is a piece with no definable genre. The song is very intriguing in this way. This band aims to create that confusion; they have no defined style like most bands do. They are a unique ever-changing band that likes to experiment and seeks change as well as uniqueness.
By Max Winters
