Darren Hayes, former multiplatinum-selling frontman for Aussie duo Savage Garden (

), has come into his own on This Delicate Thing We've Made. It's been a whirlwind few years for Hayes: on his third solo album after Spin (2002) and The Tension And The Spark (2005), Darren parted ways with Sony, started his own label Powdered Sugar, and married his partner Richard Cullen in a civil ceremony in London.

As one review rightly pointed out, if Hayes was still attached to Sony / Columbia, no megaconglomerate record company would have ever financed anything as ambitious and hard to categorize as This Delicate Thing We've Made. Spanning 25 tracks on 2 CDs, the album is all over the place sonically in a tribute to some of Darren's idols, including Prince, Michael Jackson, and Kate Bush, and the authentic retro vibe is courtesy of a 1983 Fairlight CMI syth. Darren's earlier collaborations with Robert Conley on Spin (Crush (1980 Me) and Tension and the Spark continue on TDTWM, along with Justin Shave as producer (Justin played keyboards on Darren's Big Night In tour).

Even though there is a unifying theme of time travel, Darren's bouncing off the sonic walls, from funk to electro to boy band to uniquely Darren. Unexpected samples (barking dogs, airplanes, horses) crop up in the middle of songs, and two songs (Conversations with God and Neverland) strongly remind me of Tori Amos-influenced Casey Stratton (

), who shares the same soaring falsetto and sense of lyrical drama.

My main issue is the balance between uptempo flirtations with electronica (club hit Step Into the Light, Casey, Listen All You People, Me, Myself, and I) and slower ballads, which make up most of the second disc. I feel that TDTWM lacks the overall cohesiveness of Tension and the Spark, and I find myself skipping over a few of the tracks (the aforementioned Bombs Up In My Face and the dark, gritty Setting Sun). However, TDTWM grows on me with each successive listen. It's such a nuanced, complex work that multiple listens are required to do Darren's creative vision justice.

This special edition features deluxe packaging (suede clamshell box) with a double-sized booklet containing exclusive photos.

Kudos to Darren for the creative, pass-the-good-karma origami bird marketing that ties in with TDTWM's theme. He encourages fans to print an origami bird, write a wish or note (world peace, happiness, someone loves you, etc.), fold it, and leave it in a public place for others to find. If you find a bird, you can upload its location and a photo to neonbird dot com/something-wonderful

There are some artists out there who churn out new albums every year with one or two catchy songs on them that they can put out to radio and rely on those to sell their product until next year when they do it all over again. The result is usually bland, forgettable music.

I really appreciate the work Darren Hayes has done with his latest album which I'm listening to right now. You can tell the time he took with each song and each came from inspiration. He's creative with his writing instead of basically saying the same thing in every song but in different ways.

I'm glad Darren chose to go independent this time. This allowed him to be as creative as he wanted and the results really paid off. The music here is just amazing. It's not like anything anybody else is doing which is so refreshing.

Darren shows some of his political views and his humor on this album which I just find fantastic! He is a great artist. I still listen to his previous album on a regular basis after all this time. And I can tell I'll be listening to this one just as much.

2 discs of musical brilliance and open exploration. Darren gives it his all on this yet allows himself a whole bunch of room for experimentation and exploration that really makes the journey very interesting and deep. I worry if this album doesn't get a whole lot of commercial success because it's so desserving. Thoughtful, authentic, and definitely delicate. The music scene out there is usually anything but. Do yourself a favor and listen to this one.

I'm a long-time fan of Darren Hayes (since the early Savage Garden days), and I admit that when I heard that he got married, I grew a little worried. After all, Darren's BRILLIANT last album, The Tension And The Spark, was sublimely steeped in isolation and melancholy. I was skeptical how someone with such a brilliant album like Tension And The Spark AND a new marriage was going to release something good this time around. I was fully prepared for lovey-dovey gooey schmaltz.

But let me tell you -- This Delicate Thing We've Made is an ASTOUNDING album. Darren Hayes is both a fantastic songwriter and performer. The melodies of the songs are superb -- Darren has always been able to write gorgeous, easily accessible tunes, and this time it's no different. The electronica instrumentation is highly innovative, complex, and lush. Like Tension And The Spark, the sound of this album continues to evolve and push the boundaries of electronic pop. It experiments with changes in melody and rhythm and progression, and at times sounds almost theatrical in scale. The retro 1980s elements of the music are added in a way that doesn't make this album sound OLD, but fresh and new. Musically, this album is not afraid to experiment, but it also doesn't lose its audience in the process.

But the best aspect of this album, for me, is how emotional and honest and human it is. I don't think Darren is the most poetic lyricist out there (some lines come across as cliche and clunky) but he is one of the most sincere. He sings candidly and straightforwardly about the human condition in the world today -- about pain, love, separation and happiness in a modern society that is pervaded by the media and materialism -- and the songs in here ring true to me because of his honesty. I think that right now we're used to pop/electronica songs that are filled with incomprehensible lyrics (they're "artistic") and watered down or detached subject matter, that when someone comes along who basically says: "Here are my thoughts and emotions," we become startled by the honesty of it all. Most of the negative reviews I've read online accuse Darren of being pretentious, but I don't sense pretentiousness at all -- Darren Hayes is an idealist and a dreamer, and in this album he is showing us an intimate glimpse into his mind.

I personally think this album is better than Tension And Spark (which I think is AMAZING) because it is much more varied in subject matter. Tension And Spark is what I go to when I'm feeling melancholy, but this album deals truthfully with joy as well. For instance, the song Who Would Have Thought deals with love finally being found after years of sadness, and each time I listen to it I am overcome with the song's sense of profound gratefulness.

The level of production and songwriting and personal commitment in this album is very apparent, and makes this one of the best pop albums in recent years, and one of the best of Darren's career. I'm very glad that Darren's able to take pop music in this much more emotional and complex direction, without giving up its immediate melodic appeal.

I can't really say enough about Mr. Hayes. The reviews above have pretty much said everything that needs to be said on the cd. It is above beyond the best album that i've bought not only this year but in a couple to be quite honest. I don't have a single track on "Delicate Thing We've Made" that i dont love and how the songs speak to you. I couldnt help but feel it on the one song "Bombs Up In My Face". Its very personable and speaks on a certain president. We know all about. I love how what they did with his voice on the song as well. There's no way i couldn't speak on this song with much admiration.

Normally you find when artists release 2cds one of the cds will be nice and the other so-so or some great songs mixed on one cd and some on the other cd. But with this release Darren bucks that trend something fierce. I've already seen the video for "On The Verge Of Something Wonderful". It's eye opening, artistic and just down right fun to watch from beginning to end. The song oh yeah that is on point as well. It makes you feel like no matter what's happening in your life. That your close to finding that something that you call wonderful in your life whatever that may be. It's yours. I could list my favorite tracks but then i would have to pick and choose. I love all the songs on the cd. I know people will be like that's not really possible. Trust me listen to this cd once and try not to do a repeat right after the last song on the 2nd cd "The Tuning of Violins" goes off. That's an excellent song in its own right with some fine violin playing going on while Darren sings his heart out on the song as usual.

I've loved each of his previous cds and didnt really think. It could top his last one...not that it needed to. I still would be feeling it regardless because i love his music and song writing abilities. But this cd bar none is one of the best out there from all that i've experienced (quite a bit). I doubt you'll listen to this and think otherwise...but find out for yourself just how much of an excellent release this is for real. Savage Garden was good...but Darren Hayes so much more to him than anyone could ever know. For some though provoking material check out "How To Build A Time Machine" you'll see exactly what i mean. Uptempo, mid-tempo or slow songs the cd has all of them and then some. This thing he's made is much more than delicate. It's a thing of wonder that folks should check out soon.

25 songs that give you a better understanding and a peek inside what makes Darren tick. He's obviously happier than ever with life and with this CD release. It comes out for everyone to see...very impressive!! Here's to the future and some fine music from a talented artist and songwriter.