Mark Baughman’s Working Theory – The Distance

Mark Baughman’s Working Theory – The Distance – Album Review

Awesome to have this band back in the mix!  I say band…it’s largely all Mark Baughman at the core of it, but he’s got the occasional guest along with him & such…you get it.  I mean, he’s not just calling it Mark Baughman and leaving it at that – there’s a whole Working Theory to go along with it, which sometimes has a ton of people, and at others has a few.  The Distance is mainly Baughman from what I’ve read, though we’ll highlight a few of the other Working Theory folks that show up along the way.  Either way, it’s been a while since we last had Mark Baughman’s Working Theory on these pages of ours – I think it was all the way back in the pandemic era of 2021, back when they released the album No Prophet Here.

“Time And Space” gives you a couple seconds or two to get settled before it kicks into full gear.  It’s got a thick-ass consistency to it…lots of space at the same time…essentially, this opening cut sounds very much like you’re listening to it being played live, right in front of ya.  Personally, I think that’s pretty cool.  I know a ton of musicians (okay, most) spend nearly their full careers wishing they could get their live sound onto a record, and here on “Time And Space,” Mark Baughman’s Working Theory has achieved exactly that.  Whether it’s the ENORMOUS kick drum sounds, or the clever use of the space surrounding them…or a combination of both, MB’sWT should be proud of this audible accomplishment for sure.  As to whether or not the multiple twists & turns or the main hooks will land with the listeners out there, I’m a bit less sure about all that, but hopefully the enticing way the live sound is emulated here at least makes people curious enough to start listening, and they can sort out what they do or don’t like from there.  Lots of intricate details in the technique of the guitar, and Mark sings this song very well too – in my personal opinion, there should be more than enough here on “Time And Space” to get folks in the mood to continue listening…and if you’re a fan of Progressive tunes, you’ll have an even easier time diving into an album like The Distance.  “Time And Space” is a stellar example of how well MB’sWT goes about using its “Time And Space,” and opens this record with a BIG song designed to attract attention.

As the album shrinks its sound for the second track, “Go The Distance,” you can feel a more gentle vibe added in to replace the enormity of what you’d just experienced in the opening cut.  No objections here – I’ve listened to so many tunes throughout the course of my lifetime that I could always go either way in that regard, but it is worth noting that the record almost does a complete 180-degree turn within its very first two tracks.  Loved the additional saxophone added into this song from Jeff Miguel, and the piano from Marco Cremaschini as well…and of course, the guitar from the main man himself is always something special to listen to – I very much dig the kind of searing tones that Mark Baughman chooses.  Partly because they remind me a lot of what you’d hear on records like New Adventures In Hi-Fi by R.E.M. I suppose…but I feel like I’d naturally appreciate them regardless of what I might compare them to.  “Go The Distance” is largely about commitment I’d reckon…or perhaps more accurately, what makes us commit, versus what would have the power to entice us to break the commitments we make.  So yes, it’s a love song…of sorts…but one that’s written from a very intriguing point of view that’s both grounded and got one foot out the door at the same time.  Highly relatable if you’ve ever experienced the push/pull lunacies of love, or felt the urge to shake up your life to try something new after having been in another routine for a long time…”Go The Distance” is composed of thought-provoking lyricism and imagery while it simultaneously keeps you floating along with the way it’s composed so dreamily.  Gotta give it up to Baughman directly on this one though…it’s the guitar tones that keep me engaged.

Wait a second…did he just say ‘sentry’ on “Never Coming Home?”  He did!  Well would you look at that!  I can absolutely guarantee I have never once heard that word appear in a song before…and like I mentioned earlier, I’ve listened to a few tunes in my time.  I go both ways in situations like that.  One the one hand, from a writer’s perspective, I love seeing that kind of poetry and uniqueness in the word selection – but on the other hand, I recognize how words we don’t normally hear in everyday speech can also snap us right out of listening intently to the music we’ve got on, because we do a double-take.  Usually, I find myself more in favor of saying things how you’d naturally say them, but with respect to that, Mark’s always been organically poetic…it doesn’t feel forced when he includes words like ‘sentry’ where it would for most folks, you feel me?  So I’m cool with it.  I still notice it, because it’s really THAT unique to find this word pop up in a song…but it still fits, because it’s Mark.  All-in-all, the main highlight of “Never Coming Home” from my perspective, was the way that Baughman sang this song.  The lyricism is a very close second…he’s got some remarkable emotion threaded into this tune, and a powerfully heartbreaking finale in what he’ll sing to you – but it’s really the way that he sings this song with such a wonderful combination of weary wisdom and a tired soul’s sound that was nothing short of remarkable.  Musically, it’s even more gentle than “Go The Distance” was, yet I think most listeners out there will agree that “Never Coming Home” ends up becoming a bold standout and a highly memorable moment.

I freakin’ loved debating the particulars of “Gabby Petito” in my head.  Oddly enough, I just finished watching a three-part documentary on the tragic story of her murder, so the details are very much fresh in my mind, not that they haven’t been since it happened to tell you the truth.  Just seemed like such a senseless loss of life, occurring through the circumstances of a relationship that’s gotten well out of hand…the kind of stuff so many of us are lucky enough to find our way out of before it’s too late.  What made “Gabby Petito” really interesting to listen to though, was the notes that came along with the song, which read that “the singer is speaking for the boyfriend, who does not deserve to be named.”  And while I couldn’t agree more about that piece of shit not deserving any more of the spotlight than he’s already received – I kept coming back to the concept here, and like…well…why would you even write a song from his perspective if that was how you felt, right?  I couldn’t come up with an answer for that.  The song itself…is well intended…that much I believe, and I think we can glean that from the quote above as well…but yeah…weird choice in how to go about writing this song when that’s how you feel, isn’t it?  I felt like I ended up appreciating this song more-so than I thought it would be the kind of cut that people would tend to gravitate towards.  It’s almost got this like…”Kasmir”-esque pattern to it that I think some folks will notice, without being derivative at all…but yeah…”Gabby Petitio” is among the deeper tracks on the record, not among its most accessible.  Having said that, I admire the fact that Mark was inspired to write about her story, I love that he included her own authentic words as well, and I enjoyed the depth in a song like this, where accessibility isn’t the priority, so much as being true to the inspiration, is.  It’s definitely the kind of song that appeals greatly to me, and hopefully, as a result of Baughman writing this song, a few more people out there will learn the name of “Gabby Petito,” and remember her – but perhaps more importantly, recognize her story as the cautionary tale it has become, and take heed of it.

If you were…somehow under the impression that…Mark was gonna take his boot up off of ya at this point in the record…well…have you really been listening to his music?  This dude doesn’t really go the route designed for lightweights…and I suspect that it takes something genuinely moving to him in order for him to write about it.  Case in-point, we end up in “Mariupol” next, which is a geographical reference I’m sure many of you will recognize from reading about the current invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces.  This song tells the story of one of the invaders, who was there under the pretense that he was actually doing something noble.  “A sentinel for Motherland was what I thought I’d be.  A marker out of history.  A beacon to the sea.  But the bodies of the innocents is all that I can see.”  You see what I mean?  MB’sWT consistently comes up with something compelling to consider, and writes in a very poetic style, no matter how dark the situation might be.  These moments, where meaningful inspiration takes the highest priority, are always the toughest for any artist or band to convey in a universally accessible way.  So you end up with songs like “Gabby Petito” and “Mariupol” that tend to appeal more strongly to the more dedicated fans, or those that like their music to be about more than what your average Pop song would ever lend itself to.  There’s a trade-off being made there, but an important one if you ask me.  I listen to songs like these and understand that Mark Baughman’s Working Theory is willingly giving up space on a record for songs you’d more easily like or enjoy…but there’s a purpose in doing that.  It’s basically human evolution at its core…or at the very least, creating awareness…I think they’re ultimately one and the same, and I applaud the man for making time to help educate the masses on some crucially important issues.  “Mariupol” is a powerfully moving anti-war song I hope everyone hears for what it is.

It does say a little something when you’ve got an instrumental track like “The Fields” containing a more accessible sound for the masses than most of the songs have to this point in the record, because that’s almost never, ever the case…but here we are, and it is.  That’s not me making a knock against this album by the way – I’m a big believer in the fact that less accessibility usually equates to a bigger win for ART overall, and I’d tell that’s really the kind of record you’re listening to in The Distance…it’s an artistic one.  There’s a passion for songwriting and the craft of making music at the heart of this album, that’s the reality here…and my ears can vouch for that being well worth your time, even if you probably won’t find yourself singing along to all that much of it on your way to the 9-5.  I really liked “The Fields” – this again felt like it draws significantly from the old Zeppelin catalog of tunes, but in a very warm & welcome way.  It’s wonderfully well-played, sounds fresh & inspired despite its roots in musical history, and really does have this uplifting and inviting vibe to it that sounds spirited in all the best of ways.  I loved “The Fields.”

You listen to a track like “Sparrow’s Song” and you can’t help but admire how we all become the sum total of all we experience in the art we create, which in turn, continues the story it started long before any of us got here, and will continue on long after we’re gone.  I hear things like early R.E.M. in a lot of what Mark writes…and in “Sparrow’s Song,” I feel like there’s more you could cite, like Neil Young, and Chris Isaak, and/or whatever the heck it was Duran Duran was doing when they resurfaced in the mid-90s…it’s all of these things & more, and yet none at all at the same time – ain’t that helpful to ya?  How’s that for a sounds-like comparison?  I’m about as useful as blank piece of paper acting as a map in a digital world…you’re welcome.  In any event, what I can tell you with certainty, is that “Sparrow’s Song” is one of my absolute favorites on this record, if not THE track of all tracks.  What might make this even better for YOU, is that YOU might even feel the same way as I do for once!  As in, yes, it’s both a deep cut, but it’s ALSO accessible enough for the masses to enjoy as much as the artistically-inclined crowd would…which is honestly no easy accomplishment.  If anything, I might be taking a real long look at this particular track if I was Baughman…because this might have the clues on how to go forward from here – it’s really the bridge between how he writes what he wants to write, and what listening ears will readily accept.  So if he’s looking to expand on that organically, without having to compromise his craft, I feel like the keys to doing that are found all throughout the way he’s written “Sparrow’s Song.”  I loved the way he changed the words in the last run through of the chorus before it was over, singing “You’re only here this short time…and I just want to say, you’re my friend.”  It’s a beautiful & emotionally devastating conclusion at the same time…Baughman is a genius with his words and a master of the art of contrast.

“I Wouldn’t Want You.”  Shots FIRED Mark!  Clearly you’ve never seen me in a bikini.  Anyhow…I’d expect most listeners out there to enjoy this track, in fact, it might very well be one of the record’s most universally loved cuts in the whole lineup with its more tangibly accessible sound.  So no, of course, it’s not as much for me as it would likely be for you…but there are parts of this song I really enjoy as well.  I’m not immune to a good time.  “I Wouldn’t Want You” almost has a Stealers Wheel kind of vibe to it in a way…a little more bouncy, a little more playful, a lot more catchy than the rest of the lineup on this album by comparison.  What I felt worked out extremely well for Mark Baughman’s Working Theory this time around was the execution on the main hooks and the melody you’ll find there – it’s all exceptional stuff and turned out really well in this instance.  We’re always looking for that sound, style, or energy that is going to bring people back to listen again and again, and there’s something about “I Wouldn’t Want You” that has all that magic your ears are looking for.  I’m assuming that I’m not alone in that assessment either – when you look at the numbers on the ol’ play-count for each song on this record, “I Wouldn’t Want You” has about three times the amount of the track in second place…so kudos to whomever recognized the single-worthy potential of this particular cut – it’d make for an excellent gateway into the album for many people out there, even if it’s arguably not the best representation of the overall sound you’ll find on The Distance.  On the bright side of that scenario, you’re not paying the $39.99 lesson I used to get in buying import CDs back in the day – you can stream this song to your heart’s content and it’ll cost ya nothing at all…and heck, there will even be some industry suits & ties that’ll happily try to convince you that you’re even doing your part to pay the artist by doing so!  In any event – listen however it is you go about doing that – “I Wouldn’t Want You” is a quality tune by every measure, and while I originally tried to resist its charms, even I’d tell ya that it’s an excellent song, 100%.

So…yeah…I mean…if you’re looking for the single on this album, you just heard it.  “Ordinary People” returns the record back to its more prevalent style & sound, and delivers an impressive finale for ya.  I think if you’re like myself, and really can’t get enough of the way this guy plays guitar, then you’re going to love this last track, because that’s where Mark really steals the show once again.  Some folks really know how to wield an axe, you know what I mean?  Baughman is one of’em, and he’s proven that time & time again throughout the course of his catalog.  The rest is all commendable too though – the rhythm section has been relentlessly steady throughout the whole album, much of that due to the consistency of drummer Brian Petry lending his time and talents to every track on the album, with the exception of “The Fields” I believe.  Mark’s also done a great job with the vocals on The Distance…I’ve really got no significant complaints about anything I’ve heard in this entire lineup of songs.  Sure we talk about what is and what isn’t accessible, but that’s no measurement of the value of art or effort, it’s just the reality in what we hear, take it or leave it.  “Ordinary People,” like all these tracks, reveals an unshakable level of professionalism and passion that speaks strongly on behalf of a true love of the game…Mark is making music for the people out there that dig depth in the material they consume, and I very much appreciate that.  He saves you the highlight solo on the album for this finale and really lets those strings on his guitar do the talking in the middle of “Ordinary People” – if anything, I might have taken a few more of those moments, but admittedly, I’m probably more the exception than the rule in that regard.  Though, it should be noted, I think people tune into this dude’s music because he’s gifted in all areas…so I’d always encourage the man to let’er rip a little more, because I genuinely think his most dedicated fans are always ready & up for that.  Excellent stuff all around though – I was a fan of Mark Baughman’s Working Theory before, and The Distance reconfirmed that for me – it’s another stellar addition to his catalog, an immensely satisfying listen from beginning to end, and a real triumph for substance & style.

Find out more about Mark Baughman’s Working Theory from the official website at:  https://www.workingtheoryband.com

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