Hypnotic Eye
Though Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are considered a raw, no-nonsense rock ’n’ roll band, they’ve also always understood the value of smart production. They love to rock—make no mistake—but they also love to make records. 2014’s *Hypnotic Eye* makes that obvious with the timely “American Dream Plan B,” where the band’s textures alter from verse to chorus with ease. It\'s the result of Petty, his right-hand man Mike Campbell (a multi-instrumentalist), and coproducer Ryan Ulyate knowing intuitively how to make basic rock sound multidimensional in the studio—and hopefully on the radio. “Full Grown Boy” provides a light, swinging touch from Benmont Tench’s jazzy piano hands, making the return of Campbell’s electric guitar riffs on “All You Can Carry” a powerful left hook. The sound is often aggressive, as if the guys were hammering things out in the garage out back (“Red River,” “Power Drunk,” “Forgotten Man”). Yet three years in the making suggests that great care and thought went into the emotional immediacy of another powerful and heartfelt Heartbreakers album.
Tom Petty's stopped worrying about being flashy, because he knows he can pump out reliable product. And this is a pretty reliable Tom Petty album.
Music has become so compartmentalized over the past decade that bands that just play rock and roll seem quaint, or they disappear in the post-synth-avant-psych-gaze haze.
"Take what you can and leave the past behind," sings Tom Petty on "All You Can Carry." "We gotta run."
Pithy lyrics, fine vocals and brilliant playing combine to irresistible effect on the latest offering from the US rockers, writes <strong>Molloy Woodcraft</strong>
Self-declared 'full-grown boy' Tom Petty returns to the straigh-ahead rock of the Heartbreakers' early material, and some of the old magic is still there, writes <strong>Dave Simpson</strong>
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' Hypnotic Eye harks back to the energy of Petty's new wave origins, says Neil McCormick