Aaron is more than just master of the frenetic — he also shows himself capable of wonderful tenderness. "She Is Waking" is one of the realest songs I've heard about waking up in bed next to someone. There's a vulnerability in his voice that lets you understand just how rare and precious a moment like that can and should be. That same quality also lets you hear what could be his insecurity about what might or could happen in the days to come

The types of songs that Aaron has written for this album are some of the most difficult to pull off without coming across as being either self-pitying or a navel gazer. Far too many singers (and writers) think of introspection as a means for manipulating the audience instead of simply passing along ideas.

When he sings of regrets for past relationships, it's in a way that articulates feelings that we've all had. In the song "Sinead In Savage Purple," he talks of saying her name and knowing that's all he'll ever have of her, but he'll take what he can get. While you may have never thought of somebody in just those terms, the sentiment is immediately comprehensible and strikes a chord of recognition within you that enables you to identify with the moment.

If you've ever wished that you were involved in one of those momentous moments of popular music history, such as seeing Bob Dylan the first time he played The Newport Folk Festival, watching Ronnie Hawkins play with The Band in a club, or seeing Joni Mitchell in a folk club in Toronto Ontario with Neil Young in the audience back in the early 60's, owning Yonder! Calliope? is your opportunity.

There is something about this disc that leaves me awestruck. I've not heard an album that has excited me in this manner since I heard my first Clash album years and years ago. Perhaps it's the energy and the honesty. Maybe it's the intelligence and the emotional integrity. Or maybe it's the burning desire that I hear in Aaron McMullan's voice to speak the truth no matter what the cost.

Whatever the reason, and perhaps it will be different for everybody that listens, Yonder! Calliope? is not a disc to be missed. This quality of music doesn't come around that often and you will regret missing the opportunity of saying that you owned Aaron McMullan's first ever CD.

You can purchase the Yonder! Calliope? directly from the Ex Libris Records' web site and hopefully other fine online retailers starting Monday, August 6, 2007.