Review: Invisible Hand by Tom Mullen

“If you like deep thought, self awareness, and swell Alternative licks, go ahead and stand up: Tom Mullen’s Invisible Hand is your stop. The song cruises along to a keen melody played in a stellar, shimmery sixties guitar tone to low key sparse drumming, while Mullen’s whimsical vocals calmly drop deep economic theory from Adam Smith to a supremely catchy tune, droll, well informed, and entirely unbothered.

Invisible Hand’s instrumentals are fantastic, featuring tight drumming and a beautifully toned guitar and bass playing fabulous retro melodies, excellently executed with a slightly staccato feel that keeps the track lively, interesting, and thoroughly alternative. The song’s lyrics are candid and knowledgeable, dropping easy references to economists Summers, Friedman, Keynes and a trite shoutout to author Ayn Rand, in the midst of its treatise, while also giving personable, less high-minded warnings about trusting the system for a combo that is both intelligent and approachable. Mullen brings great, Alternative vocals that are easy to listen to, while plenty of instrumental flourishes, including brief but satisfying solos beginning at approximately 3:18 keep the piece lighthearted and fun through and through.” – Mary Wildsmith

About the Reviewer:

Mary Wildsmith is an FM Radio DJ, and has been involved in both on-air work and radio production for five and a half years, in addition to working the past decade in and out of the live entertainment industry. She has experience with the fickle nature of the music industry, selecting singles to promote or discard for radio play, and engineering stage to audience sound systems. Having worked balancing, troubleshooting, and running audio rigs has enabled her to be both sensitive, and sympathetic, to the finesse and nuance of quality recording. Mary is passionate about promoting new and independent artists, and has spent extensive time in round-table environments discussing music and audio critically, and collaborating with artists to enable them to put the best possible foot forward with their art.