I can't really go into too much detail in this tiny box, but I'm leaving for the time being. Feel fr...
I can't really go into too much detail in this tiny box, but I'm leaving for the time being. Feel free to remove me from your CoT, alerts, etc. I'm having this account deleted in a few days but I'll still be over on 'the other side'! x
Member since:15.06.2003
Reviews:121
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I'm not fussy when it comes to music - I'm normally happy with whatever's on the radio. I have a large collection of albums but most are presents that I haven't really listened to! One of my most played at the moment though is The Spirit Room by Michelle Branch. I was given her second album Hotel Paper for Christmas so decided to have a look at her first album before I listened to the second.
There have been lots of female singer songwriters coming onto the music scene lately, and Michelle Branch has been pushed to the background. Norah Jones, Katie Melua, Delta Goodrem, etc, are doing well for themselves and people seem to have forgotten about Michelle! Her second album did moderately well but her first single from Hotel Paper faded away quickly after being released.
Michelle released her first album, Broken Bracelet, in 2000 independently but it didn't do that well in the American charts. She was signed up by Madonna's label Maverick a year later though, and her second album The Spirit Room came out soon afterwards. This did well in America - she won a Grammy, dueted with Carlos Santana and The Spirit Room stayed in the US charts for more than 80 weeks, but it didn't do so well over here.
Now I am not really any good at music reviews but want to do this album justice, so any tips or feedback would be really appreciated. I find it really tedious reading track by track reviews so I'll just go through my personal high and low points
of the album which'll hopefully be more interesting!
The album opens with EVERYWHERE, which I think was the first single to be released. It's a great opener - it's one of my favourites from the album. It's a very lively song that almost everyone can relate to at some time or another, about being in love with someone and how he seems to be everywhere you look. It's really a pop song with a guitar-y background - very catchy and you'll be singing it for ages afterwards!
YOU GET ME is the second song and it's a very pleasant, likeable track but not particularly memorable. It's sweet and summery, and nice enough to listen to while it's there but you won't remember the words afterwards! It's quite pink and fluffy; very sweet and inoffensive. Not one of my favourites but not bad by any means!
Next is ALL YOU WANTED, which is quite similar to Everywhere. It seems to be about wanting to protect someone and take them out of a bad situation, and is very sad and wistful in a way. The sadness is masked by the noisy but polite guitars and Michelle's forceful singing, though. After a slow start, it kicks in and is really catchy. One of the strongest songs on the album!
YOU SET ME FREE is a really lovely song. It's light and dreamy, and again a very sunny, summery song. The lyrics are nothing new and you can easily guess what she's going to sing next, but still, it's a really pleasant, romantic song. Good to listen to if you're loved up maybe, but even us singles out there will enjoy it!
I'm not too sure what to make of HERE WITH ME. The lyrics and background music are very repetitive and rhyme, giving the song a controlled, smooth effect, but the whole song seems a bit too tightly reined in. The chorus is the only bit where Michelle seems to be able to relax a little and sing honestly. It's listenable and catchy, and I don't feel the need to skip it, but it's not my favourite.
SWEET MISERY starts off sounding very dated and sounds like something from the eighties, but kicks in after a few seconds, and is a really lovely song. The backing music is quieter than usual, and really focuses on Michelle's voice rather than drowning it out, and it's a nice one to have a listen of when you're stressed or tired. Very pleasant.
IF ONLY SHE KNEW is the one song I'm not so keen on. It seems to be about how Michelle likes this guy but he has a girlfriend, and she wants his girlfriend to know how much she likes him? I'll have to look up the lyrics, I'm not sure. It has a very country feel to it which is offputting and is quite tedious. Some repetitive songs work but this definitely doesn't. It's not too bad but not as good as the other songs, definitely.
GOODBYE TO YOU is perhaps the slowest song on the album and I think you can tell she has put a lot of effort into it. It's a very sad, atmospheric song that lingers in your mind for ages afterwards. Her voice sound very delicate and fragile on here, and it's a very well put-together song.
The last song DROP IN THE OCEAN sounds quite jazzy and similar to what Norah Jones might put out, but it's a pretty poor way to end the album. It's only memorable for being rubbish! The echoing makes the song sound home-made and it has been fiddled about with too much with a computer - there's too much going on to make it a decent track.
I think Michelle has an ordinary voice - she isn't a particularly good or bad singer. In fact, she can get quite nasal at times! The thing is though, the standard of the material is quite high so she can get away with having an average voice. It is quite distinctive - it is quite folksy and can have a sore throat-style huskiness to it when she sings.
For her first big album, I reckon The Spirit Room is pretty good. It's a polished album she can be proud of! It's steering more to pop than rock, but has wide appeal. Some of the songs are a bit samey at times, but they're all good anyway - there's only one song that I can honestly say I don't like, which is Drop In The Ocean.
It is quite hard to define what sort of category Michelle Branch fits into. She is quite commercial, quite poppy, but guitar-y too. That said, she's nowhere near as unnatural and forced as Avril Lavigne or Busted (though I do have a soft spot for Charlie!). She writes all her own music and plays the guitar which is quite impressive in this world of Britneys and Avrils! I wouldn't say she's exceptionally talented but she's good at what she does.
It's a great album to listen to when you need to calm down or just need something quiet in the background while you do something else. It's one of my most played at the moment! I didn't like it too much at first but it's the sort of album that grows on you. I can't imagine anyone hating it - you'll either love it or not really be bothered about it. It's just a very inoffensive, pleasant album.
It was released in 2001, so is quite old now - it can be bought quite cheaply. I bought mine in Music Zone at the Trafford Centre for about five pounds (no pound sign!) but is available from CD-Wow for 8.99 GBP, which isn't too bad. You can have a listen of the songs at Amazon.co.uk as well but the quality is awful! Recommended? Yes!
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I absolutly adore her music and have both of her albums, fantastic voice! Sarah x
Lancashire_Angel 20.03.2004 15:15
I like the way you have done this actually - not too long and waffly either as my album and film reviews tend to be. Well done, however it doesn't sound like my taste, but then I wouldn't know that if it wasn't so well explained would I? Sharron xxx
T21AMY 11.03.2004 18:04
You learn something new every day - I'd never even heard of her !! Axx
"So I'm a little left of centre, I'm a little out of tune", sings Michelle Branch on The ... more
Spirit Room's second number "You Get Me" ...well, maybe. Branch offers a well-produced pastiche of chiming and strumming guitars, hip-hop-lite beats, quiet-verse-t...
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Mar 8th, 2004
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