Sloan Wainwright - Upside Down & Under My Heart

Sloan Wainwright - Upside Down & Under My Heart
2011, Derby Disc

In the beginning, God created LoudonWainwright, III, and it was good. Later came Rufus and Martha, and then LucyWainwright-Roche, and all was well for a new generation. Yet quietly, in themidst of all this musical creation, another Wainwright voice emerged. Forged ofearth and sky, the deep contralto of Sloan Wainwright arose from the earth.Many stopped and stared in surprise at this unknown commodity, hewn more fromthe classical bedrock of folk music than any of her extended family. Now, sixalbums and many accolades on, Sloan Wainwright continues as the quiet musicalbedrock that serves as the contrast for a wildly talented and creative family.2011 saw the release of Sloan Wainwright's sixth album, Upside Down &Under My Heart, chronicles the aftermath of the death of her husbandGeorge, and noble effort of a human heart to overcome, heal and begin anew.

Presence is a gift in an artist. Itcannot be learned or taught, but the natural talent can be developed in one soendowed. Sloan Wainwright's presence on Upside Down & Under My Heartis preternatural, carrying a sense of spirit and truth that is compelling.Without artifice or affectation, Wainwright bears her heart in ten originalsongs that cut to the meat of human suffering, healing and survival. "LiveOut The Best Of Your Life" is a mantra, of sorts, a challenge to wake upeach day, put your feet on the floor and go on. Simple in sentiment and deep inmeaning, it's the perfect opener, delivered in Wainwright's clear, naturalvoice. "Upside Down & Under My Heart" is a sweet country balladwritten from an expectant mother to her unborn child. The almost melancholyarrangement is in counterpoint to the peaceful, loving words that pass from oneto the other, in a moment of beauty so simple it shines. "Here I Am"plays like a song of becoming; of growing up, or of emerging from darkness intoa new sense of self. Once again, Wainwright eschews fancy dress for simpletruth, allowing the emerging beauty of the human heart striving to be itself shinethrough.

"I Can See Now" is asimple declaration; a matter of fact, beautiful poetic statement of account ofone, again, emerging from darkness. Similarly, "My Song" is aboutestablishing yourself once again. In the context of the album, it can be seenas re-claiming the sense of self that was shared for so long and then tornasunder. In this moment, Wainwright finds healing, even as the pain of losscontinues to abate but slowly. "I Wear The Ring" plays in manylayers, sounding at first like an expectant bride, but perhaps a node to thepast rather than the future. The allegory of the road will not be lost on thosewho make their living from music, although here the road is more mystical thanreal. "Holland" represents a sense of moving on, finding the power tobegin again amidst new scenery. The story is told alongside a stunning melody,simple in its beauty yet weighty in its power. "Little Bit Right"explores the struggle to feel okay about feeling okay, and Wainwright concludeswith "I Am Free", a gone-but-not-forgotten anthem that declareshealth and happiness in the gift of the time left.

In many ways, Sloan Wainwright comesfull circle on Upside Down & Under My Heart. What doesn't changethroughout the album is the simple power of lyrics, and the utter beauty of themelodies she pares them with. Wainwright builds simple parts into sublimecreations while exploring the depths of human pain and recovery without maliceor spite; a refreshing approach on modern music, popular or otherwise. UpsideDown & Under My Heart is too mature to be truly popular, unfortunately,but it is a wondrous work that deserves to remembered and recognized when theyear-end lists come around.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Sloan Wainwright atwww.sloanwainwright.com.

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Emmanuella Grace - London Stories

Emmanuella Grace - London Stories
2011, Emmanuella Grace

Emmanuella Grace is an Australian-born, London-based singer/songwriter who has performed all over Europe and Australia.  Classically trained, Grace studied musical theater and jazz at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music in Brisbane.  With appearances at Sydney Opera House, The Barbican and Royal Albert Hall, Emmanuella Grace is a seasoned performer.  Emmanuella Grace recently released her debut album, London Stories.  Produced by Snowy Raphael, London Stories will open your eyes to a brilliant young story-teller and songwriter.

London Stories opens with "Butterfly", a picture-perfect introduction in solid pop dressing.  The title is pure allegory for Grace's voice, which grows from a solid, pretty alto into a fluttery upper range.  The tune is catchy, and the piano/synth-driven pop arrangement makes for a great start.  "Kentish Town Laundry" is an intriguing look at life and decay, following the lives of those in a small suburban Laundromat.  Grace uses distinctive imagery to detail the melancholy and grace of people just trying to get by.  It's a gorgeous piece of songwriting that is both poetically and sonically pleasing.  On "Words Aren't Enough", an abusive ex is put in his place, with the narrator standing for herself and taking control.  This will be a song of significance for anyone who has ever been there.  Well written, the song is full of an honest power, carried by a melody that grabs you.

"Share The Covers" is a reconciliation waltz.  Emmanuella Grace gives her best vocal performance of the album while using strings to fill out the arrangement.  Emotive and real, there's a distinctly theatrical feel here.  It wouldn't be surprising to find "Share The Covers" licensed out to a television show or movie in the near future.  "Here Today" is a solid album track, but does get a bit too repetitive at the end.  "Upside Of Anger" is a re-evaluation done in ballad form.  Grace builds tension throughout the song, taking off into a breathy soprano range that surprises.  "Soho" is brilliant.  Grace captures the manic air of London's famed neighborhood in a song of theatrical style and temperament.  Hints of Julie McKee and Nellie McKay are evident here, and it’s abundantly clear that Grace had a lot of fun on this recording.  London Stories closes with "Cocaine", an intriguing musical monologue that seems to be written from both inside and outside the clutches of its subject.  It's an intriguing closer, from the manic implications to the flat line portrayal played out in synth tones.

Emmanuella Grace is striking both in appearance and sound, building deep impressions in listeners even through recorded media.  At the same time, there is a sense of distance, as if Grace is holding something back at times.  She sheds that air on the last two tracks, but there is the risk that Emmanuelle Grace is at times more connected to her stories than to the listeners.  This isn't detrimental, as Grace is an absolutely spell-binding story-teller.  And the personal connection thing may well be there live, but it doesn't quite translate on CD.  If Emmanuella Grace ever puts the three together, she's going to rock the world, figuratively speaking.  For now, London Stories is a very impressive debut.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Emmanuella Grace at http://www.emmanuellagrace.com/ or www.myspace.com/emmanuellagrace.  London Stories is available on CD from Emmanuella Grace’s webstore.  Digital versions of the album are available from both Amazon.com and iTunes.

Lucy Wainwright-Roche - Lucy

Lucy Wainwright-Roche - Lucy

2010, Lucy Wainwright-Roche

Lucy Wainwright-Roche comes with quite a pedigree.  Her father, Loudon Wainwright III is something of a legend, and her mother Suzzy Roche was one-third of the sisters folk group The Roches.  Lucy is half-sister to Rufus and Martha Wainwright, each accomplished singer/songwriters, and Sloan Wainwright and David Roche all have their own branches on the family tree.  Perhaps the most surprising thing about Lucy Wainwright-Roche is the fact that she didn't plan on a career in music.  Wainwright-Roche got her Master's Degree in education in 2006 and spent some time teaching elementary school in New York City.  By 2007 the family vocation was exerting too insistent a pull, and Wainwright-Roche decided to pursue music full time.  Three independent EPs later, Wainwright-Roche has won the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival's Emerging Artist Competition (2008), the Grassy Hill Kerrville Folk Festival's "New Folk Singer/Songwriter Competition", and a 2008 Independent Music Award for Best Folk/Singer-Songwriter Song ("Snare Drum").  On October 26, 2010, Lucy Wainwright-Roche releases her first full-length album, Lucy.

Lucy opens with "Once In", a metronomic and stilted series of recollections that have an almost stream of consciousness feel to them.  You might have a hard time following her train of thought here, but Wainwright-Roche's voice makes everything alright; a sweet soprano that soars in airy undertones and lights perfectly on each note and word.  "Open Season" explores loss through memories of what has been and speculation of what might be.  It doesn't take long to realize that what you're hearing is far above and beyond the call of your typical folk singer/songwriter.  Wainwright-Roche isn't a strict storyteller, no.  She's more of a musical impressionist, mixing emotions, moments, people and events into a musical milieu where shading, texture and sound tell the story, while Wainwright-Roche's thoughts and apt attention to detail move the story along. 

"Early Train" explores the opposing dreams that sometimes tear a relationship apart or keep it happening from all.  The melody Wainwright-Roche has constructed is masterful, and her lyric touch is subtle and refined but misses no minute detail of the moment she's describing.  "The Worst Part" is a heart-to-heart monologue written to someone who's broken her heart.  Wainwright-Roche delivers an honest diagnosis of the relationship that's not so much about blame as it is facts, and then admits that the love has never gone.  There's a vulnerability and honesty here that's palpable, and it's nearly impossible not to empathize and like the singer/songwriter in this moment.  "October" celebrates a moment on the relationship timeline, the zenith of the relationship "we're happy as we're ever going to be".  It's a light and breezy moment brushed with the intangible knowing of reminiscence and features special guests the Indigo Girls.

"I-35" is a musical oil painting where Wainwright-Roche's impressionist tendencies come to full fruition.  The song is presented as more of an open-ended question than a story, but the spaces in between are filled with pure beauty in the arrangement and Wainwright-Roche's nearly carefree vocal wanderings.  "Accident & Emergency" is a straight-forward reflection of one incident involving a loved one.  It's here that you'll see the pure magic in Wainwright-Roche's songwriting.  "Accident & Emergency" takes a banal moment; one that would not ordinarily memorialized in song, and turns it into a beautiful and moving experience.  If Wainwright-Roche has achieved one pure moment as an artist, it's here, where she serves as a perfect mirror for the world around her while painting it in an affectionate pastiche.

All of that being said, "Mercury News" is the best pure songwriting on Lucy, with Wainwright-Roche showing a delicious pop sensibility in a song about a secret relationship "meet me by the water / someone's wife and someone's daughter / none of these will be my name today").  Everything works on this song, from the pop hook, the country-tinged arrangement or the picture-perfect lyrics.  On "Starting Square" Wainwright-Roche turns impressionistic again in a relationship song that explores the angst of second meetings.  This sets the listener up for Wainwright-Roche's vocal knockout, a lyric cover of Paul Simon's "America".  It's here that listeners are treated to the sweet, soaring soprano voice of Lucy Wainwright-Roche in its airy, flowing beauty.  Simon fans will love what she does with the song, which is reverent to the original but shines with Wainwright-Roche's personality.  Lucy closes with Elliot Smith’s "Say Yes", a duet with ­­­­Ira Glass that is well done but seems very out of character with the rest of the album.  "Say Yes" is a post-break-up song that sounds like it may have been cut live-in-studio with little in the way of touch-ups.  As such it proves Wainwright's voice to be as beautiful and sweet as it sounds on the rest of the album, while Glass essentially serves as a vocal foil.

The prodigal child often seems like the most welcome.  Lucy Wainwright-Roche's divergence from the family path was brief, luckily for us.  Wainwright-Roche's subtlety and panache are matched by her ability to craft impressionist scenes made from musical notes and words.  On Lucy, Wainwright-Roche takes everyday moments and emotions and turns them into works of utter beauty.  Lucy may seem somewhat mundane on first listen, but the album grows about you and sucks you in.  Lucy Wainwright-Roche has created a quiet masterpiece.  Lucy is a Wildy’s World Certified Desert Island Disc.  Don’t miss it.

 Lucy drops on October 26, 2010.  You can pre-order downloads from Amazon.com.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Lucy Wainwright-Roche at http://www.lucywainwrightroche.com/,  www.myspace.com/lwrlwr or lucywr.blogspot.com. 

Kim Taylor - Little Miracle

Kim Taylor - Little Miracle
2010, Kim Taylor

Cincinnati-based singer/songwriter Kim Taylor returned recently with her fourth album, Little Miracle. A stark, stripped down set of folk rock songs, Little Miracle represents Taylor’s most powerful songwriting to date. The album was written and recorded in The Maid’s Room in New York City (a favorite place of Rufus Wainwright) over several days, and has the urgent emotional feel that only that sort of milieu can bring.

Taylor opens with the title track; "Little Miracle" is repetitive and catchy, about as bubblegum as Taylor will allow herself to get. The song has mild commercial appeal but isn't groundbreaking. "Lost And Found" sticks with the repetitive style but does so in a pretty melody and shows off Taylor's unusual voice. "American Child" is intriguing, exploring the dreams of parents affected by war and difficult times. The song might also be interpreted through the eyes of an immigrant family, a theme that's not lost on Taylor later in the album. Taylor delves into the depths of loss and grief on "Anchor Down", casting herself into a sea of emotion for a stark and moving vignette.

"Do You Ever Feel Lonely" intertwines a catchy melody and arrangement with a melancholy mood; an interesting juxtaposition that sounds like something that might come out of a jam session between Sheryl Crow and Bonnie Raitt. Fatalism rules the day in "If I Am Wrong"; where effort is ultimate object but the outcome doesn't seem to matter. Taylor's shining moment comes on "Fruit Of My Labor", a brilliant look at life and dreams through the eyes of a migrant worker. Taylor shows distinct depth as a songwriter here; bring the subject alive in the vibrant color of her words and her presence as a performer. Little Miracle closes with a low key but powerful love song in "Sharp Cutting Wings (Song To A Poet)", showing off more of the impressive songwriting depth that Taylor kept somehow muted through much of the album.

Little Miracle leaves the impression of an artist who is getting better as she continues to write. Taylor starts out on solid footing, but the final two tracks on Little Miracle are the sort of songs songwriters aspire to a handful of times in their careers, much less consecutively on one album. You won't be likely to leave Little Miracle behind anytime soon, but when you do it will be in open anticipation of whatever Taylor graces us with next.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Kim Taylor at http://www.kim-taylor.net/ or on Facebook.  Little Miracle is available on CD from Amazon.com.  Digitial copies are available from iTunes.