every time i feel your touch i'm broken
Top 10 Albums of 2009
7. Leona Lewis - Echo (bedshaped)
Think what you may about people who find fame from a 'talent show', and yes, there have been some stinkers who have just been the best of a poor bunch, or in the right place at the right time....whatever. But whatever you think, I challenge anybody to question the fact that Ms Lewis can sing. And not just sing, but sing her fucking heart out.
I quite like the fact that she was 'discovered' amongst a pile of rabble in a pop contest. In my opinion, she has a fantastic voice, a great range and quite simply thank fuck for talent shows like X Factor looking for people like her, because had she not had the opportunity to gain public support that way, she probably would never have got anywhere.
Her debut album was, at the time, the fastest selling debut album in the UK and has since gone on being certified Platinum 9 times. That's some major feat for a nobody. Even more so considering most critics (et moi), didn't think it was that great an album. This second release pushes her vocal abilities to a much higher level. Not only that, but she sounds much more confident.
I guess a lot of the album is playing it relatively safe for Leona's voice, because it's dominated by ballads. And that's where she comes into her own. Her silky tones can handle a good range, but it's when she lets her powerful voice reach out that wins, hand down, every damned time. There are a few mid tempo tracks on here which are pretty damn good too. Lost and Found, featuring One Republic, Don't Let Me Down and I Got You all excellent examples of great, great pop songs. Nods towards the likes of Rihanna, Pink, Nelly Furtado, even Kelly Clarkson. All great stuff, but trust me, it's about the ballads.
It's interesting that Happy has been the lead off single release, because it's more of an uptempo track and nowhere near being a good example of the rest of the album. But considering she's been well received with tonnes or radio, video and Tv appearances on that single alone, it can only be a great sign of things to come for her.
I'm torn between songs for my standout track. The hidden track Stone Hearts and Hand Grenades is gorgeous, as is Don't Let Me Down featuring Mr Timbersnake on backing vox. The simplicity of Alive just gently massages the heart, while her cover version of Stop Crying Your Heart Out is just genius. And then she really strikes warmth and power from within Broken and does a wonderful female version of Prince on Can't Breathe, both of which are....just....stunning.
If I have to pick, then I'm going for Broken. A beautiful ballad, sung so emotionally. And of course it has the wonderful lines, "All those sorry's, there's a million reasons why....you can't mend me. Don't even try."
It's perfect late night listening pleasure. Girls tend to love Leona. Guys tend to keep their secret love of 'pop' to themselves. well, stand up and be counted, I say. She's an amazing singer, with a brilliant voice, a lovely personality who struck lucky and no matter what other people may think of you for saying so....do it! Stand up for the underdog who is making it!
I love Leona. And I'm proud to say so.
Listen to: Broken
7. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns (Swisslet)
Natasha Khan’s second album brought her a second nomination for the Mercury Music Prize. She didn’t win this time either, but who really cares about that? Here we’ve got an artist to treasure: playful, inventive and with a seemingly ever-growing palette of sounds and influences.
Here she sounds simultaneously like Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, Tori Amos with perhaps a dash of 1980s-era Fleetwood Mac thrown in for good measure… and it’s all good. Breathy, ethereal, poetic, mystical… the album even includes a song – Daniel – about a crush on the fly-catching, fence-painting hero from the Karate Kid films, and as if that wasn’t enough excitement, a duet with Scott Walker (The Big Sleep). And, ladies and gentleman, you can’t end an album on a better note than that.
Listen To: Glass
7. Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You (LB)
If you’d told me three years ago that I’d end up putting a Lily Allen record into my ‘Top 10 albums of the Year’ list, I’d have thought you were potty.
However, here we are and It’s Not Me, It’s You sits proudly at number Seven on my list. Quite how Allen has managed to weedle her way into my affections when I originally thought her daft, affected Cockney accent was nothing more than horrifically annoying, I’m not sure...
I really, really love It’s Not Me, It’s You. It has a real mix of styles and sounds, from some quite dance-orientated numbers to a couple of quite personal slower songs. It also features some great singles, of course, from the country and western silliness of Not Fair to the utterly superb number One single The Fear.
It is a much more mature record than Alright, Still. Allen takes herself much less seriously, concentrating simply on writing some brilliant records. Her voice is much more understated and the quality of the twelve tracks do all the talking here.
Pop music at its very, very best, this. A surprise, but a very welcome one.
Listen To: I Could Say
7. Leona Lewis - Echo (bedshaped)
Think what you may about people who find fame from a 'talent show', and yes, there have been some stinkers who have just been the best of a poor bunch, or in the right place at the right time....whatever. But whatever you think, I challenge anybody to question the fact that Ms Lewis can sing. And not just sing, but sing her fucking heart out.I quite like the fact that she was 'discovered' amongst a pile of rabble in a pop contest. In my opinion, she has a fantastic voice, a great range and quite simply thank fuck for talent shows like X Factor looking for people like her, because had she not had the opportunity to gain public support that way, she probably would never have got anywhere.
Her debut album was, at the time, the fastest selling debut album in the UK and has since gone on being certified Platinum 9 times. That's some major feat for a nobody. Even more so considering most critics (et moi), didn't think it was that great an album. This second release pushes her vocal abilities to a much higher level. Not only that, but she sounds much more confident.
I guess a lot of the album is playing it relatively safe for Leona's voice, because it's dominated by ballads. And that's where she comes into her own. Her silky tones can handle a good range, but it's when she lets her powerful voice reach out that wins, hand down, every damned time. There are a few mid tempo tracks on here which are pretty damn good too. Lost and Found, featuring One Republic, Don't Let Me Down and I Got You all excellent examples of great, great pop songs. Nods towards the likes of Rihanna, Pink, Nelly Furtado, even Kelly Clarkson. All great stuff, but trust me, it's about the ballads.
It's interesting that Happy has been the lead off single release, because it's more of an uptempo track and nowhere near being a good example of the rest of the album. But considering she's been well received with tonnes or radio, video and Tv appearances on that single alone, it can only be a great sign of things to come for her.
I'm torn between songs for my standout track. The hidden track Stone Hearts and Hand Grenades is gorgeous, as is Don't Let Me Down featuring Mr Timbersnake on backing vox. The simplicity of Alive just gently massages the heart, while her cover version of Stop Crying Your Heart Out is just genius. And then she really strikes warmth and power from within Broken and does a wonderful female version of Prince on Can't Breathe, both of which are....just....stunning.
If I have to pick, then I'm going for Broken. A beautiful ballad, sung so emotionally. And of course it has the wonderful lines, "All those sorry's, there's a million reasons why....you can't mend me. Don't even try."
It's perfect late night listening pleasure. Girls tend to love Leona. Guys tend to keep their secret love of 'pop' to themselves. well, stand up and be counted, I say. She's an amazing singer, with a brilliant voice, a lovely personality who struck lucky and no matter what other people may think of you for saying so....do it! Stand up for the underdog who is making it!
I love Leona. And I'm proud to say so.
Listen to: Broken
7. Bat For Lashes - Two Suns (Swisslet)
Natasha Khan’s second album brought her a second nomination for the Mercury Music Prize. She didn’t win this time either, but who really cares about that? Here we’ve got an artist to treasure: playful, inventive and with a seemingly ever-growing palette of sounds and influences.Here she sounds simultaneously like Kate Bush, PJ Harvey, Tori Amos with perhaps a dash of 1980s-era Fleetwood Mac thrown in for good measure… and it’s all good. Breathy, ethereal, poetic, mystical… the album even includes a song – Daniel – about a crush on the fly-catching, fence-painting hero from the Karate Kid films, and as if that wasn’t enough excitement, a duet with Scott Walker (The Big Sleep). And, ladies and gentleman, you can’t end an album on a better note than that.
Listen To: Glass
7. Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You (LB)
If you’d told me three years ago that I’d end up putting a Lily Allen record into my ‘Top 10 albums of the Year’ list, I’d have thought you were potty.However, here we are and It’s Not Me, It’s You sits proudly at number Seven on my list. Quite how Allen has managed to weedle her way into my affections when I originally thought her daft, affected Cockney accent was nothing more than horrifically annoying, I’m not sure...
I really, really love It’s Not Me, It’s You. It has a real mix of styles and sounds, from some quite dance-orientated numbers to a couple of quite personal slower songs. It also features some great singles, of course, from the country and western silliness of Not Fair to the utterly superb number One single The Fear.
It is a much more mature record than Alright, Still. Allen takes herself much less seriously, concentrating simply on writing some brilliant records. Her voice is much more understated and the quality of the twelve tracks do all the talking here.
Pop music at its very, very best, this. A surprise, but a very welcome one.
Listen To: I Could Say
delivered by LB at 8:09 AM
2 Discussions:
Lily is indeed a great album, but no matter how much I liked it, it just didn't cut the mustard for my ten.
It's head and shoulders above her debut, and really shows how much she's grown up.
Bats for lashes is a great album. Hmmmm, maybe I could have included that! Dammit.
I totally agree with you about Leona's route to stardom, and clearly she is immensely talented.
I just don't really get Echo though. It's the sort of thing I should like, really, but it just left me a bit cold. Too much of it sounds the same and whilst there are some highlights, it really failed to excite me at all.
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