Perfect Disguise Review (Shindig Magazine)

Another review for Perfect Disguise has come to my attention. Yet again it is positive. Here is it is in full below.

The Contrast "Perfect Disguise"

Wicked Cool CD - www.wickedcoolrecords.com

Almost ignored in their home country, Peterborough’s The Contrast have been quietly producing classy, stylish guitar pop for a while now. An REM comparison immediately springs to mind; Reid is not a plagiarist or imitator – far from it – but his wistful vocal and the well done backing vocals are the connection to early REM, or, to be precise, to bands who inhabited similar musical territory. The UK’s Harbour Kings (previously Rollin’ Thunder) and the USA’s Jolene spring to mind. What all the aforementioned bands share is an ability to create songs that are “strangely strange but still normal”. The 16 tunes here have plenty of soaring melodic choruses and hooks aplenty, but without being at all “experimental” or “arty” they sidestep conventional song structures and patterns, heading off in unpredictable directions that never seem jerky or too clever. The title tune, ‘Believe’ and ‘How To Tell’ are cases in point; beguiling and adult power pop for the 21st century. There are some stand-alone pop songs here but the album works best as a whole, allowing the songs to blend into one another. I can’t always guess where David Reid is coming from, but I just know I like it!

- Phil Suggitt – Shindig magazine (March-April issue 2008)