Let the Day Decide is the latest release from New York state-based singer/songwriter George Mallas. Even a single listen to the album’s ten tracks reveals Mallas to be among the most thoughtful songwriters working today, bar none, as the compositions are full of evidence. Notice how so many of the songs sound expansive, full of space, and even attain a measure of grandeur in some cases despite their economical length. The winding and weaving melodies of the songs, particularly those with the heaviest piano presence, sound inexhaustible. His instincts for where to introduce instruments for the first time and, more importantly perhaps, to what degree are present from beginning to end.
“Shine” shows he understands the importance of an energetic opening. It seems elementary, even to casual fans, but Mallas’ understanding goes a step further. “Shine” is a “thesis” statement of a kind in the way opening songs on albums used to be – a statement that lays out what to expect for listeners. His lyrics are outstanding, but perhaps a little too literal at times. Mallas seems a bit hesitant to indulge the more poetic side of his songwriting character.
It’s a shame because there’s proof aplenty for its existence, especially the way he neatly wraps many of the verses, and his eye for significant concrete detail. The fast-paced light pop rock of the opener gives way to “Your Name”, the first of what you can call Mallas’ “big screen” ballads. He’s working with a full band here but his swirling and often eloquent command of the piano fleshes out the sound into something more.
The autobiographical implication in the words doesn’t undercut the song’s universality. Virtually every adult over 25 has lived through this experience on one side or the other and Mallas’ plain-spoken verbiage helps avoid any personal obscurities. The piano-led sweep of “Your Name” and later songs wouldn’t be possible, however, without the drumming. “Your Name” has percussion providing exclamation points at all the right places and presses the right buttons in others.
“History” will be a peak moment for many. It’s structured as a dialogue, like almost any great duet is, and derives as much power from Mallas’ precise writing as it does the singing. The singing, however, is superlative. Both vocalists take great care to strike the right inflections in their particular passages and tailor their voices to the song. “Go and Behold” deserves ranking as one of the album’s best moments. It is heavily orchestrated, never schmaltzy, and the suggestive strings singing beneath the piano fill it with additional color. The massed chorus has an unquestionable gospel influence. Introducing a full band arrangement later in the track is the standard operating procedure for Mallas, but nonetheless potent.
“Chasing Rainbows” has a bit more lyrical bite than many of the album’s other songs. There’s a lot of piano here as well, but surprising touches set it apart. The brief harmonica solo, for instance, doesn’t sound tacked on but, instead, like a natural outgrowth of the song. This is a track with several different things going on, it never settles into a predictable trajectory for long, but Mallas makes it all cohere.
The closer “Let the Day Decide” is, among many other things, a final nod to tradition. The habit of closing an album with its title song has long accentuated a songwriter’s artistic aspirations as it usually stands as some sort of definitive last statement for the listener. “Let the Day Decide: is in that tradition, without a doubt, but brings the curtain down on the collection with skill. George Mallas has released one of the best singer/songwriter albums of 2022 with Let the Day Decide and its title song drives that point home nicely.
Claire Uebelacker