If you, dear reader, have any musical tendencies at all, you've probably entertained the idea of cutting a solo album. Why not? You know what your music is really meant to sound like, so why not do it all yourself? Hell, you can figure out the whole producer/engineer thing, or at least clearly communicate your demands to a pliant studio lackey, right? It looks so easy, it'll be no problem.

Before you take the long dive into that shallow pool, take a minute to look at those who have gone before you. Specifically, learn from The Truth About Lies by Darling Waste, a.k.a. Lance Williams. While this album bubbles with promise, I have to think that its failure to reach its full potential sits in Mr. Williams' decision to keep most of the reins in his own hands.

To Williams' credit, The Truth About Lies isn't all that bad. The songwriting is almost stellar in some places, like "Changing of the Seasons". There are bits and pieces of each song that jump out at the listener, but only a few songs on this CD can hold my attention from start to finish. Also, Williams does a respectable job of blending the various instruments into a solid sound. Unfortunately, that sound is diluted by the hit-and-miss singing, and the overly introspective, woe-is-me lyrics that never stray from the usual rock cliches of lost love and depression.

That's where a few more hands in the creative process would have helped The Truth About Lies shine. Williams takes the music about as far as he can, but the album never delivers the punch he's trying for. If only an outside set of ears had a go at the post-production, or a paid professional had been in the studio, playing Dr. Evil and pointing out places where the strained, out-of-tune singing sounded like strained, out-of-tune singing instead of angst-ridden rock. The muted, almost-powerful-enough guitar and not-quite-blended bass beg for an outside producer, one that could have pushed The Truth About Lies from mediocre to good. Maybe not great I'd like to let Mr. Williams polish his songwriting skills a little before dropping that superlative on his music. He has the potential, if he can figure out how to let go of a few reins and bring other talent along for the ride.

www.darlingwaste.com