Wednesday, July 4, 2012

CD Review: Collette Savard - Best Dress

Artist:  Collette Savard
Album:  Best Dress
Label:  Self released
Release date: April 21 2012

The first track on this CD is Nicer Things, which is a slow paced country song.  When I first listened to it I noticed that the vocals sounded far away.  Initially I didn’t like it, but gradually I began to appreciate it.  It was a brave measure for an otherwise straightforward song.  I could tell she had a beautiful voice, and thought it was interesting she had chose to bury it in the mix.  Then I realized my headphones were plugged in all the way.  Yep, that fixed it and put the vocals back on top of the mix as the artist intended.

The musicianship that went into Best Dress is impressive.  There are something like fifteen instruments being played on the album, but not necessarily all at once so it provides variety without being overwhelming.  Collette has a beautiful voice and controls it as an instrument and not just as a means to express the lyrics.  Her music is folk, country, pop.  I would really like to hear her sing sincere angry rock from her heart.  She has a voice that, if fueled by true vengeful hurt, would bring a level of legitimacy back to a whore of an industry………………… But that is not her style.

By song #6 I wasn’t sure about this album as a whole.  Individually the songs were good, but together there wasn’t enough variety for my taste.  Then track seven started: Are You Coming Along.  This is my favorite track on the album.  The composition is very interesting and the reverse tracks utilized in mixing changes the otherwise conventional style of the album.  The song is hooky and catches your attention more so than the rest.

I went and looked up some of Collette’s other material online.  The two main players in the project have a lot of talent, and are doing some very interesting things.  I could be missing the mark, but it almost seems like they are hungry to get out of the box.  Every now and then they create an ethereal noise that stands apart from the rest of their music.  I think it is those few glimpses where we see of what they are capable.

This is not from the album, but I like it.

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