My Paper Made Men - Amy Studt

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'''Name''': My Paper Made Men
'''Released''': May 2008 (CD Version March 2009)
'''Chart Position''': Uncharted
'''Singles''': Furniture: Uncharted, Chasing the Light: #277, Nice Boys: Uncharted


'''Track Listing''':


'''1'''. Sad, Sad World
'''2'''. She Ran
'''3'''. Furniture
'''4'''. She Walks Beautiful
'''5'''. One Last Cigarette
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...Studt releases her second album, My Paper Made Men (re-released as a physical CD in 2009), but does it capture the attention of today’s audiences or does it simply fall short of her more successful contemporaries?


Well for starters a firm fence has been built with Studt standing as far from it as possible as the likes of Katy Perry, Britney Spears and Girls Aloud dance on top of the predictable pop structure that plagues today’s ... more

CD Info:

Name: My Paper Made Men
Released: May 2008 (CD Version March 2009)
Chart Position: Uncharted
Singles: Furniture: Uncharted, Chasing the Light: #277, Nice Boys: Uncharted

Track Listing:

1. Sad, Sad World
2. She Ran
3. Furniture
4. She Walks Beautiful
5. One Last Cigarette
6. Nice Boys
7. Walking Out
8. Chasing the Light
9. Paper Made Men
10. Here Lies Love
11. The Lucky Ones
12. Foolish Heart

Standing in the shadows of commercial pop, Amy Studt has always been a misfit to fame. After her debut album False Smiles turned platinum, Polydor (her record company) stating ‘low record sales’ dropped her. Fast forward to 2008, now older, more wiser and with an aroma of maturity, Studt releases her second album, My Paper Made Men (re-released as a physical CD in 2009), but does it capture the attention of today’s audiences or does it simply fall short of her more successful contemporaries?

Well for starters a firm fence has been built with Studt standing as far from it as possible as the likes of Katy Perry, Britney Spears and Girls Aloud dance on top of the predictable pop structure that plagues today’s charts with a fake stench. My Paper Made Men almost creates a style of its own, with alternate moods mixed in with a little Indie perhaps for good measure. First single Furniture is a fantastic example of this with its slow beat and more or less innocent nature, but with a heavy dose of mellow themes dominating the lyrics.

Imagery is thrown into the song from all angles likening her feelings from a past relationship turned bad as she feels like an object, an item of abuse for men to use at their will. Paper Made Man is another fitting example of Studt’s heavy use of imagery, this time however more feisty, more resentful with girl power tossed in to boot. It flows along with an echoed beat like a reading of a spell resonating with the sort of witchcraft theme.

Musically, My Paper Made Men offers something different with each track. Gentle piano sounds begin She Ran before erupting into a full orchestral crescendo at the chorus that only enhances Studt’s dark angel voice. Second single, Chasing The Light touches on an almost rock element with heavy use of loud drums and elongated lyrics to give it a forced sound, but one that works surprisingly well.

The only thing really worrying about this entire album is the fact that it lacks any element of commercial success; maybe flying too far from that fence does have grave consequences. This album won’t be for everyone and so it runs the risk of slipping by unnoticed. Here Lies Love is gentle with its beautiful piano tune that gels wonderfully with the romantic lyrics that sound excitingly tragic. However, even though it is highly original and sounds absolutely mesmerizing, the song erupts into a stanza of Latin – as far from the dance tunes that everyone buys nowadays.

Third single Nice Boys perhaps is the closest thing Studt gets at attempting pop with its addictive, playful rhythm. However unlike the chart toppers Avril Lavigne and Kelly Clarkson who unleash boy bashing as an art form, Studt uses her intellect to come up with something more subtle, more sarcastic and without a doubt more effective. Yet you can’t help but notice that it does sound a tad bit different, and because it is crafty in its lyrical meaning, many people simply won’t catch on or see the appeal and therefore move on.

Vocally, Studt perfects every song on the track list, but She Walks Beautiful perhaps stands out for its emotive chorus. She reaches a nice range throughout the entire song, but brings the complete melody to life by singing with a believable conviction that doesn’t come across false nor does it sound too over the top. At the far end of the spectrum One Last Cigarette shows another incredibly diverse trait to Studt’s voice with its mellow violin tune sung with style straight from the black and white Noir films that were popular in the 1940’s and 50’s.

Lyrically things haven’t really changed much from previous album False Smiles, rather just more effective in thematic approach. Bullying, betrayal, lonliness and dying love all play a part here and though the disposition is very different, the singing more powerful and general production extremely more cohesive, at the core of it, things haven’t really evolved much from the hits Just A Little Girl, Misfit and Under The Thumb. Track seven, Walking Out emits similarities from various tracks from False Smiles.

One vital difference however is that with the exception of Sad, Sad World all songs play such an important role in making My Paper Made Men, my personal favourite album of recent years; something False Smiles eluded to do with numerous average additions. She most certainly is not just a little girl anymore. Sad, Sad World though cunningly written it sounds very out of place and tremendously uncontrolled that could be perceived as inexperience. On a plus note though, every song on here is written by Studt herself which shows that she does in fact have the maturity and talent to write her own lyrics and conduct things the way she wants them to be. Manufactured I think not!

Originally released as a ten track album, two bonus songs are available on with the 2009 re-release. Exclusively obtainable from the download release only Foolish Heart takes swipes at heartbreak that stings a chord with its sassy, self deprecating chorus. An absolute delight. Available only on the CD version, The Lucky Ones is a wonderful out of this world experience that would belong flawlessly on stage, with its heartbreaking lyrics that hurls metaphors out of the box very ingeniously all building to goose bump feeling as the song comes to a close.

Its Sod’s Law really that a fantastic album such as this would miraculously linger in the shadows never really getting the number of sales it most certainly deserves. Amy Studt really does justify herself as British talent personified that sings out with emotion, fervour and at just the right moment, sincerity. In my opinion, never has an album stood out at mixing themes to a high standard with great music that sounds very real rather than pompous beats relying on heavy bass, wrapping itself up and calling itself influential music. This wont be everyone’s cup of tea, you cant dance to it and its far from being classed a happy music, but it does touch on the very realistic issues that most of us like to cover up and shove in the closet. Tragically a brilliant album that unfortunately time will forget.

 

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