HANGDOG - Shawn Sevo tells the truth.
    This amazing C.D. is about what needs fixing and how to fix it. From the encouragement of Fire Engine,through the sense of urgency of Tell Bar,to the message of hope in Summerland,this record will take you on a trip.
    Shawn's guitar work is outstanding,as usual.
    This record is a must have - especially for the socially concious.Reccomended - turn it up.
Michael Fonfara

Hangdog-
Fire Engine-

Its got a quirky rhythm and melody to it that grabs you by the nose and demands to be listened to. The energy is really good, and vocal delivery is really well executed. The actual singing dodges all the right notes at the right time to really make it work.

its hard to put into words how this one works the way it does for me. I like its quirkiness, and love the chorus.

Beautiful.

L

Now this is something different again. Its fun. A bit mad. The lyrics are a bit barmy. Great. Nothing wrong with that. great guitar riff. The song doesn't quite flow where you think its going to and that grabs your attention

shawn,
i listened to your songs. they should be on the radio..meaning they are radio playable but not typical. very original with the best way to describe them as an REM/Wings/YES combo with a touch of Radiohead. very nice arrangements on Stratosphere and Life is Play. both have the "hook" to them. let me know when you add more songs.

Hey Shawn,
I feel inclined to comment on your song writing abilities more than any one particular song. ( I did listen to Fire Engine and Life is Play). Your song writing skills are strong and you have a nack for the off beat, that's a good thing these days. Dont be insulted when I say your voice reminds me of John Lydon aka Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols (one of my all time fav punk bands of yesteryear).

Stratoshpere is my personal fave there's some great guitar work to compliment the complex arrangement!

Shawn,

I'm listening to Fire Engine as I write this. It rocks! The arrangment is excellent, the guitars sound great and your voice is fantastic. I'm not just saying this because you complimented me, I really like it. It reminds me a lot of Jason Falkner - great guitar pop, catchy yet not lightweight.
Listening to Stratosphere now. Yep, you're definitely good Very nice baroqu interludes! Get the band together and come gig in England...

Shawn,

Here’s my review for your three songs.

“Fire Engine”:
Well-produced. The sound is perfect. I love the upbeat swing of this song. The way you use the chords is very innovative. I can’t place a finger on it. I think your selection of such changes simply gives it an original feel that is almost so original that it took me a minute to get used to it. Then I really started feeling it! Looking for a comparison, it didn’t take me long to think of Pearl Jam, however I honestly think yoursurpass them, in terms of the originality of your songs. Perhaps, I just hear a little Vedder in your voice.

“Stratosphere”:
Another well-produced song. This one brings forth a completely different feeling and different sound (with the same flavor). I love those artists who don’t leave everything sounding exactly the same. This song definitely reminds me of some of the things I’ve tried to articulate in song, as well. However, I think you succeed; whereas, I do not! Haha. The guitar playing is pretty and tight, at least as tight as I require. Love the feeling that the picking has over the vocals at around 3 minutes. Beautiful! Well-done. Love the song.

“Life Is Play”:
Production quality is high, as usual. Guitar playing is quality. The build that you mention is certainly present. I must say that my favorite part is just after “Life is…,” when it gets broken down into the vocals and acoustic again. For some reason, that part with the acoustic riffs around 1:40 is what stands out. Very well done.

I love your songs and music. Where do I get a CD?

I listened to your music and I have one word ... excellent, intelligent, great mix, the hook in Fire Engine is awesome. That song could easily be a hit ... well that was more than one word, but I really do like it. You're very talented. The production quality is very good, and obviously you're a very accomplished/gifted musician.

Todd

Stratosphere makes me think:

Jethro Tull meets R.E.M. meets The Pixies.

The vocals makes me think of R.E.M., the classical sounding piano and guitar breaks make me think of Tull, and the indy rock sound that comes in from time speaks Pixies to me.

Cool stuff

I rather like this stuff, not hard to listen to at all.

1st let me tell you i am/was a big Sex Pistols fan.
Your vocals remind me of Johnny Rotten, this is a compliment o.k.
You have a similar texture to him and some of your melodies have Public Enemy sounding influences.
You also sound like you have an English accent which adds to the songs' feel.
Very nice production, great effort all around, well done

Hey Shawn!!

Very really GREAT stuff you have there!!<<--extremely enjoyable!!...you have managed to find a niche that separates yourself from the crowd,, well done!!
...anyway,, you are a true song writing/performing musician to say the least!!....There's no doubt in my mind, that if you apply yourself,,, you will succeed in the music business...

Refreshing. A good clean mix with dissonant melodies.

Lots of clever hooks here. What's really great and successful is how you have a six-sense for avoiding clichés. Just when the temptation for one comes up, you yank the melody into some unfamiliar territory. Neato stuff boss. Stratosphere is a real gem of modern rock, although it might be a little bit ahead of the curve in terms of popular musical tastes. (but that's why I like it so much)
You understand the genre and have quiet a bit of technical mixing skills, as well as a fairly sophisticated knowledge of modern pop song construction.