I recently had the opportunity to contribute some music to a project of this charity - founded by a most remarkable and driven young woman:

http://www.createchangenow.ca

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE_Sno4-yGY

Written by Id Guinness & Duane O'Kane. Recorded nearly 25 years ago!

http://vimeo.com/4306337

Hi and Happy Holidays!

Thanks so much for your support in 2008.

Just wanted to let you know that I have just released a rather cool 10 track
digital-only album of new recordings of some of my old songs, a few tunes
I have written for other artists and a couple of remixes of songs from
"Cure for the Common Crush."

It's called "Crush d" and I've got a few tracks posted here on Myspace.

In August 2009, my next one "Soul Envy" will be out and I'm pretty stoked
about it. If you'd like to pre-order it, you'll receive 'Crush d' free
right now. A 2 for 1 recession special.

Thanks for your time. Keep in touch and have a wonderful holiday season!

Id

Read all about it here:


http://www.indie-music.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=7948

Id Guinness
Cure For The Common Crush
self-released

Id Guinness comes seemingly out of nowhere with an electrifying and eclectic album. He takes myriad influences and somehow weaves them all together. The storming opener "Rising River" recalls U2's stadium anthems but with a mystical undertow that's the singer�s own. "Jade Garden" sounds thrilling and exotic like an early Peter Gabriel track, but with an Asian instrumentation. The title song is a powerful piece of writing recounting the sheer force of love. Musically it recalls the seventies era of Pink Floyd, without being a ripoff. It has its own soul.

A cover of Bowie's "Always Crashing In The Same Car" is well chosen and apt. It's clever not to go for the big hits with an artist like Bowie. This version is a bit more ragged and atmospheric than the original. Id Guinness is an artist with a talent all his own and an album to treasure.

Anna Maria Stjärnell, Luna Kafe, Sweden

http://lunakafe.com./moon146/ca146.php

By Thomas D. Szewc - WWW.INDIE-MUSIC.COM

Okay, I'm just going to come right out and say it: Id Guinness' Cure for the Common Crush is one amazing piece of art. If I were forced to narrow him down to one particular genre, I'd say Guinness falls into the progressive, psychedelic rock category reminiscent of 70s art rock acts like David Bowie and (more blatantly) Pink Floyd. Although trying to pin his work down to a specific label defeats the sprit that embodies it. The beauty of this CD comes in its ability to completely break down genre walls and incorporate a variety of different styles into one respected album.

I'm not sure I can remember the last time I heard a CD as diverse as this. Starting with "Rising River," Id Guinness introduces an almost funk-rock backing rhythm with a very original guitar lick that instantly drew me in. Next, "The One That Got Away" switches to a tighter, more classically inspired background flow. Before you become accustomed to that, "Jade Garden" brings a traditional Chinese erhu (look it up) into the mix that does wonders to set the mood for a song rich in Asian imagery:

She says trust your intuition
the universe is guiding your life
You'll get nowhere standing still
Every excess becomes a vice
Your money's no good here, she said
Lotus flowers filled my head
Jasmine leaves were what she read.

While Guinness' varied arrangements are the album's main draw, it's easy to see how his composition can be just as impassioned. This imaginative trend continues throughout the rest of the album, with each song bringing something different to the table. From the harder rock of "Down to Earth" to the 80s inspired sound of "Always Crashing in the Same Car," Cure for the Common Crush makes sure you never hear the same thing twice.

What keeps the album from feeling too consecutively different or disjointed is Guinness' steady vocal rhythm and lyrical styling. He seems to know exactly how to tip-toe the genre line, rather than falling right over it like many would. However, on occasion the general similarity in the rhythm and flow of the choruses gives the impression that the songs would feel comparable without the creative background styles. Granted, this isn't the case for every song and is a minor complaint considering the effort put in to the techniques experimented with. All in all, this is an extremely solid, well-produced album that should not be missed.

Descending from the Great White North like a surprise cold-front, comes Vancouver's Id Guinness' impressive Cure for the Common Crush – a project on an indie label that has all of the sonic trappings of a major label release. This densely-produced collection of thirteen songs starts off with the driving, pulsating, almost throbbingly rhythmic introduction of "Rising River," a song laced with swirling guitar and eastern-sounding synth lines, topped off with Guinness' Bono-meets-Bowie vocals: an impressive opening, indeed. The over-all sound of Cure for the Common Crush plays against what we usually expect to hear from indie releases: Guinness gives us an album with a big, full, thoughtfully produced sound and an obvious stylistic awareness of the classic rock era, with several tips of the musical hat to the likes of David Bowie (whose "Always Crashing in the Same Car," the only non-original track, is covered), The Moody Blues, U2, Pink Floyd, ELO, and – of course – The Beatles. Despite the obvious classic rock-era musical references, the music on Cure for the Common Crush is fresh and interesting. The album's second track, "The One That Got Away,"  sounds like a rock 'mirror universe' parallel to Gnarles Barkley's "Crazy," with lines like "I'm crazy – I'm crazy to let you get to me …oh, I have heard that you may be crazy, too," sung in an almost-falsetto by Guinness, and backed up by George Martin-like percussive strings and very Ringo-influenced drumming: this track also features the amazingly fluid, emotionally powerful guitar playing of Curtis Debray, who is the featured guitarist on many of these songs. The Beatle influence perhaps is at its strongest on the closing track, the dreamy, "Wailing Wall," which ultimately gets into one of those great coda-riffs, repeating and getting heavier with every go-round, in a "She's So Heavy" moment, with more of that Starr-influenced drumming and Id sounding very much in a Lennon mode. We even get a genuine "yeah, yeah, yeah," in "Always Crashing in the Same Car," for good measure! 
 
Produced by Guinness, this is a project full of excellent art-rock and pop sounds, at the same time familiar and jarringly original. To me, the most accessible song – and one with quite a reasonable hook – is "Down to This," which might be the most radio-ready track on the CD, although "The One That Got Away," is quirky enough and interesting enough to catch the ear on the very first hearing, as well. Id Guinness has produced a project that sounds like the work of an artist that's well into his career and well past the 'indie' stage – certainly, Cure for the Common Crush is a contender that can hold its own against some of the more established names. Guinness' voice is versatile and easy to listen to, and the musicians – especially the very impressive Curtis Debray on guitar and Pat Steward on drums – do an excellent job producing a big classic rock sound without getting pretentious about it. Helping out Id, who writes the bulk of the songs, sings, plays keyboards, synth bass, and synth guitar, we have Ledenhed on guitars, Leslie Harris on vocals, Delina on guitars and vocals, Donn Tarris on bass, Heywood McMartin on drums, and the afore-mentioned Debray and Steward. If there is any mis-step at all on this project it might be the occasional warbling female vocals that appear on a couple of tracks, but it's a minor complaint and, perhaps a matter of personal taste. 
 
Cure for the Common Crush is a refreshing, well-produced album that delivers artfully crafted rock songs performed by musicians that play with skill and genuine emotion. Lead singer and front-man, Id Guinness, has the voice and presence to hold the project together and give it personality – it just might be the cure for what ails ya'….
 
By Bert Saraco  
http://www.myspace.com/expressimage     
http://expressimagephoto.tripod.com