As reviewed by Robert �The Folkyman� Payne
I have been a friend of Sarah�s mother for over 3 years and have been hearing about her �musically gifted daughter� for much of that time. Knowing how proud parents are, imagine my surprise when I listened to Sarah�s music for the first time. Rather than hearing whiny adolescent ramblings set to music as I expected, I discovered a collection of mature serious well-crafted songs by a talented young artist.
As noted in previous reviews, many of these songs were conceived from the trauma and pain following the death of Sarah�s father. While there is much pain and despair expressed in these songs, this is not an album about death. It instead follows her path to a rebirth of love and joy and the resurrection of her soul. It details a young insecure girl�s rise from tragedy and confusion to become a mature confident young lady.
Sarah greatest strength is her songwriting, especially her emotional, confessional lyrics. The maturity and power of her lyrics belie her youth. Most of her lyrics can stand on their own as poetry but work even better when sung by Sarah�s unique voice. This is not a �Hey, look what I can do!� show-off voice but rather one that serves the needs of her songs. Sarah�s vocals convey every emotion in her songs � all the beauty, love, joy, anger, bitterness, pain & despair. While it may not always be �pitch perfect�, it is a voice that will stay with you, a voice that you will find comfort in and want to hear often.
Sarah accompanies herself on the guitar and piano. Her guitar playing is simple, uncluttered and melodic and proficient enough to suit her songs. She is a self-taught pianist and her piano becomes a second voice, expressing all the emotions conveyed by her voice. Her piano work can move from simple & lovely to bold & dramatic. There are instances where it just simply soars! Will we hear some cello on her next offering? I hope so!
Some of Sarah�s songs are so emotionally raw, they pull the listener in so close that it is sometimes uncomfortable to the listener. THESE ARE NOT FLUFF SONGS.
Sarah�s fierce vocals and uncomprimising lyrics in �Speak� remind me of the sheer power found in the early songs of the Indigo Girls.
The unexpected tempo and tone change in �Blind To Me� perfectly echoes the spontaneity of an emotional outburst.
�Open Fire� has a haunting, almost gothic quality that slowly creeps over you.
In �Glow�, Sarah�s plea to �feel normal again� is well served by the country/blues Lucinda Williams-like quality of her vocals on this song.
Sarah wrote �Melanchloy Melody� when she was 13. While her lyrics and chorus are strong, there is some awkwardness in her lyrical phrasing. She seems to be cramming too many big words into the first 2 verses but it all smooths out by the 3rd verse.
�Ladies In Waiting�, the spoken word piece �Daughter Of A Ghost� & the acapella piece �Angels Don�t Go Far, Do They?� all specifically relate to the death of Sarah�s father. Not only do they convincingly convey Sarah�s pain & loss only one week after her 16th birthday but they also accurately capture the atmosphere of those �macabre personal gatherings� that often accompany the death of a loved one.
On every album, there is usually one song that fails to touch you. The appeal that others have found in �Smell Of Summer� seems to elude me. As expected, the lyrics are strong and the piano work is solid but the vocals seem lethargic and the song just seems to ramble on too long. To each their own!
I saved my 3 favorites for last. Pure simplicity can often produce beautiful results. Such is the case with the song �Treason�. The laid back guitar line accented by piano, the hopeful yet realistic lyrics and the gentle sincere vocals combine to make �Treason� an absolute joy to listen to.
�Lion King� is a near perfect example of a well crafted song. It is short, melodic, honest & emotional and very well performed. The lyrics are just ambiguous enough to make the listener think they know what the song means but they are not QUITE sure. It would be a welcome addition to the playlist of any college/public radio station. KCRW, KSPC � are you listening?
�Broken Dolls� is an incisive portrait of the insecurity and self depreciation that most women have experienced sometime in their lives, regardless of their age or circumstance. The song�s tempo reflects the mood set by the lyrics - starting slow, then growing more rapid and syncopated, then mellowing out again towards the end. Sarah�s vocals are especially moving and there is a perfect example of the �piano as a second voice� as it echoes and dramatizes the line �Hey beautiful, what's it like to know you're just a test zone for his atom bombs?� One song that I have always enjoyed for it's composition and dramatic effect is "Mother" by Tori Amos. "Broken Dolls" compares favorably to that song and is, in my opinion, the master work of this album.
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