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Vanessa Carlton => General Vanessa Carlton Discussion => Topic started by: PianoPlayer12 on September 26, 2007, 07:06:49 pm
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Well i thought i'd make a topic where everyone can post tehir own review of the album, so we can see what everyone thinks of each song..if you haven't listenined to the album yet and are waiting for the release day then post your review when you get it :)
heres mine:
1. Nolita Fairytale: We'll we've been able to listen to this song for a while so it wasn't a shock to listen to it on the cd. I actually think its one of the best songs on the album, its very upbeat and catchy.
8.5/10
2. Hands On Me: This was a little different than i was expecting. I thought it would be more slowed down and full of strings, but it turned out to be a little more up tempo. However, i still really liked it. I also liked the backup voices during the chorus.
9/10
3. Spring Street: This is probably my least favorite song on the album. Its okay, but its nothing spectacular. Its a bit boring for me. However i do like the bridge.
6.5/10
4. Fools Like Me: I thought it turned out to be pretty good. I thought the intro could have been a bit more powerful...i dont really know what that is in the intro....I think her vocals are REALLY great on this song. Its one of my favorites.
9/10
5. Home: All i can say is WOW! i think this song is AMAZING on the album. I was totally surprised by the piano solo, which is absolutely INCREDIBLE. wow wow wow wow wow.
10/10
6. Come Undone: I think this song is okay. In my opinion the intro is a bit long. But it was very different compared to alot of other Vanessa songs. But i think its kinda catchy and its starting to grow on me.
8/10
7. The One: I thought it would have been really nice to have Stevie in the song, but it just doesnt seem to fit in quite well with me. I think Stevie kinda sounds like a robot in this song. But other than that i think it is really nice.
8/10
8. Heroes and Thieves: I LOVE this song. It was alot better than i was expecting. I love that violin or whatever it is in the background, and i think her vocals are GREAT in this song. It's definately one of my favorites.
9.5/10
9. This Time: This was kinda exactly what i was expecting. I think its really nice though. I think the strings are really nice in this one. I didnt really used to like this song too too much but im starting to really like it.
8.5/10
10. My Best: I really really like this song. I think the melody is really catchy and i really like the lyrics. I think its one of the better songs on the album.
9/10
11. More Than This: This is my FAVORITE song on the album. I absolute LOVE it!!!!! I think it was the PERFECT way to end the album. I think the "Let's make this a story.Let's live in the glory!" part is sooo beautiful.
This song is RIDICULOUSLY FANTASTIC!
11/10
Overall Thoughts:
I really enjoyed the record. There were definately a few standout songs for me. They were Home, Heroes and Thieves, and More Than This. A few songs i wasn't to impressed by like Spring Street, and The One. However, i will be listening to ALL the songs over and over again. I cant wait to get an actual copy of the album>
I LOVED this cd.
:)
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I'll be writing a review soon.
But i can't wait to hear More Than This and of course This Time <3
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everyone needs to stfu because stevie's vocals are gorgeous.
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Gorgeous like the cries of a dying water buffalo.
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Nolita Fairytale
Nolita Fairytale was and still is the best candidate for 1st single, as the others are not a commercial.
8.7/10
Hands On Me
Hands On Me is a brilliant song, but the use of sounds doesn't suit the way Vanessa is actually singing [one of my faves]
9.3/10
Spring Street
Spring Street, use to be the let down of the album. But after i've listened to it, i've realised this has the potiential to be the best song on the album. The lyrics are amazing.
9.4/10
My Best
The keyboard [as i assume it is] at the intro seems very boring, but as it builds up to the chorus it is very well done.
8.8/10
Come Undone
Come Undone, with it's very long intro [and ending] has been the only song i will actually skip. If i actually listen to the song, it's very good. The beat is so beautiful and suits the lyrics.
7.9/10
The One
The One, I loved it live, and i still do. I think Stevie does sort of ruin the song, but if i never heard it before i'm sure i'd like it no matter what.
7.6/10
Heroes & Thieves
This song is worthy of the album being named after it, it's a stand-out. I'm so happy with how this turned out.
9.4/10
This Time
This Time [my favourite before the album] has grown on me. Before i complained about the lazy vocals, but i realise that fits the song perfectely
9.1/10
Fools Like Me
I'm in love with this song, although the "polyphonic" noises on the intro annoy me. Still a great song.
9.7/10
Home
I'm so happy this song turned out like this, i was expecting a boring talk. This is a true work of art, and shows Vanessa very well, very good for 2nd single
9.3/10
More Than This
This song finishes the album perfectly. The extra bit [of her dog barking] is just so adorable. But the lyrics are very beautiful
9.6/10
Overall
9.9/10
Seriously the second best album i've ever listened to. [after Delta Goodrem's "mistaken identity"]
I hope on the Jap edition with the extra songs i could raise it to 10! :D
Helena's Picks!
Fools Like Me [9.7]
More Than This [9.6]
Heroes & Thieves [9.4]
Spring Street [9.4]
Home [9.3]
Hands On Me [9.3]
This Time [9.1]
My Best [8.8]
Nolita Fairytale [8.7]
Come Undone [7.9]
The One [7.6]
Best Lyrics: Spring Street
Best Music: Home
Best Live: The One
This Time
Most Anticipated: This Time
Favourite Song: Fools Like Me
That was long :lol:
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11. More Than This: This is my FAVORITE song on the album. I absolute LOVE it!!!!! I think it was the PERFECT way to end the album. I think the "Let's make this a story.Let's live in the glory!" part is sooo beautiful.
This song is RIDICULOUSLY FANTASTIC!
11/10
LOL!
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Gorgeous like the cries of a dying water buffalo.
I am curious to know how many dying water buffalo you have heard.
hahaha
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Gorgeous like the cries of a dying water buffalo.
I am curious to know how many dying water buffalo you have heard.
hahaha
If you watch programs like Nature on PBS you'd be surprised.
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Gorgeous like the cries of a dying water buffalo.
LOL omfg that was hilarious.lol
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2. Hands On Me: This was a little different than i was expecting. I thought it would be more slowed down and full of strings, but it turned out to be a little more up tempo. However, i still really liked it. I also liked the backup voices during the chorus.
9/10
I agree. I thought Hands On Me would be more ballad-like. Trying to turn the song into an up tempo pop song has ruined the beauty of the song for me. I still prefer the piano-vocal that was full of emotion.
In general, i absolutely LOVE the new songs (maybe not My Best as much), but a couple of the older songs that we've already heard are a bit of a disappointment. Hopefully it's just that I need to get used to hearing studio recordings when I'm so used to live piano vocals.
Stand out favourites: Spring Street, Come Undone, Fools Like Me and Home (this is the one instance where the studio recording is far better than the piano vocal)
LOVE the new sound. AMAZING album.
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I'm going to edit my previous post, because my preception on the album has changed ALOT after listening to it in full around 9 times.
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I've been reading really good reviews on some forums from people, saying she delivered and that it's a feel-good album, etc. I haven't read a bad one (yet).
I'm glad V hasn't strayed from who she is! <3
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Nolita Fairytale: 8/10. Its a brilliant song but I have overplayed it, so I'm putting it down a mark cause of that!
Hands on me: 9/10. I didn't see what was special about the live versions, but the album version is great! 8) really really nice!
Spring Street: 8/10. I actually quite like this song after hearing it a few times! it has more to come. It is growing on me =]
My Best: 8/10. I actually didnt like it at all to begin with but now I think it IS catchy =] nice melody.
Come Undone: 9/10. Amazing melody. Especially the beginning part.
The One: 9/10. What can I say? amazing live and even better recorded.
Heroes and thieves: 9/10. I really love how they have improved it! Its amazing. One of my faves.
This time: 9/10. I love this song. It's the same as the promosquad clip I think. Im glad they didnt change it.
Fools like me:9/10 I dont really like the intro, but its still amazing, I love the 'tick tock the time' part the most =]
Home: 8/10 Its good, but drags on a little. Well if i have time to just focus on it it's better but on my ipod I have to change it early.
More then this: 9/10 Well I havent listened to it much, but so far It Is AMAZING.
OVERALL....
Vanessa is a genius. Absolutely brilliant, she has completely lived up to my expectations!
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I am floored! I'm about 3 tracks in and it is simply brilliant and amazing and her best work to date!
Mike
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Nolita Fairytale 9/10 - We've all heard this one. I like this song and I love the drum beat.
Hands On Me 10/10 - I love how this turned out! It is more upbeat but it's got such a cool eerie vibe.
Spring Street 10/10 - I have to say that I love the nananananana's! A very bittersweet song but it's really catchy.
My Best 9/10 - A sweet and nice song. I love at the end when she says "it's like you never left"! Good stuff!
Come Undone 9.5/10 - A really feel-good song! It's uplifting and V has some great vocals in it. Love the piano in this one.
The One 9/10 - A very spooky kind airy opening. I like how the song has some darker qualities now and nice strings. Stevie's vocals don't ruin it for me.
Heroes and Thieves 10/10 - Love this song even more now. It's the perfect song to represent the album. Very, very nice strings.
This Time 9/10 - It's a lot like the Promosquad clip we heard but not as overproduced. I like it, especially the bridge.
Fools Like Me 9.5/10 - The opening is not at all what i expected. It is very upbeat but I like it. I love the vocals when goes for the "It's breaking..." part!
Home 10/10 - Amazing! I love how this came out! The song really builds up and I love what she added at the end! I love the string instrument they added to this, don't know what it is but I love it!
More Than This 10/10 - This is an uplifting song. It's the perfect end to the album and I am blown away.
Heroes & Thieves overall 10/10 - It's definitely worth waiting so long for! The album is so much above what I hoped it would be! It is very cohesive and there is no filler on the album at all. Every single track is worth listening again and again. This record just replaced Harmonium as my favorite!
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What the hell is up with stevie's voice not in sync with vanessa's they should have shadowed her voice so it stands out more it just sounds really weird but the song is awesome.
mike
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i havent listened to everything yet but Spring Street brought me to TEARS the first listen. she really touched a nerve with that one, I can't say how much i relate to it.
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I know... I love Spring Street!
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stevie and nessa both have wonderful voices independently, but jesus christ..........putting them together are like nails on a fucking chalkboard! their voices dont harmonize well at all. anyway , im saddened to say that im pretty "meh" about most of the album... with the exception of the song "home", HOLY MOSES that song makes up for it!
"nolila fairytale" "hands on me" and "heroes and thieves" and really good too.
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spring street is still the best song on the album
home is right after.
but the rest of the songs need to grow on me, and I've already listened to this time and the one, hands on me so many times so I'm outgrown them :/
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"Come Undone" has grown on me a lot. I like her vocals on it a lot.
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I'll review the songs I've chosen to listen to before the release date:
Nolita Fairytale. Well, we all know it. It's great.
Hands On Me. The intro is nice. First verse is nice. Chorus is nice. Second verse is ok, my only complaint is that the strings repeated that same note in harmonization with the verse. I mean, they could've articulated a bit. The bridge is great, especially when the na na na na na choir comes in. After the choir, i was completely dissappointed with the string arrangement. They make that whining type sound when moving to the different notes. If they would have not slid into each note, the strings
would've created a much more epic feel. The last verse is amzing and grand with the finishing choir. Overall the song is great. Single material.
Spring Street. OMG, I thought The Beatles when I first listened. Granted, it is different, but I thought it was really good. The na na na na na na nah's are smooth and sultry to me. I love them. The story of the song is beautiful and my eyes were "wet with tears." I love the ending verse about how she speaks about having a daughter in the future. The nanah's aren't that profound, but it doesn't ruin the song whatsoever. I think it's nice. The bridge is nice. I still get the Beatles feel with the background singing. especially when she transitions into the chorus afterward ("even when we have to say.../chorus") I like this song a lot. I don't see what everyone is complaining about. I think it's single material.
My Best. Short and sweet. Cute melody throughout. It's obvious this song is about Stephan. A lot of these songs are actually. I like the strings in this song. The ending could've been a little better. Overall nice song.
Come Undone. The phased organ intro could be likened to some Deep Purple keyboarding. I like it, but what the hell is it doing in front of this song? On to the song, the piano is nice. I have to say, this is probably my least favorite song so far. This song reminds me so much of one of those dime-a-dozen lame pop songs from women you hear in the music at the grocery store, if you know what I'm talking about. Just with the clapping in tempo and the light guitar. That's my only let down. I love the outro with just the jamming and piano.
and This Time We were soooo used to the speedy live version. This one was slowed down noticably. When i first listened i was singing way ahead of her. But you get used to it. It does sound mostly like the promosquad clip we heard. It's a good song. Maybe even single material.
Fools Like Me My god this song is completely different. The intro is like wtf. The song is too fast paced. Getting into the song though, it gets better. but it's definately not what we expected, a sad dark song. It needs a different drum beat to go along. I love the ending where we finally get a break from the upbeat fast tempoed crap. but all in all, it's not a bad song. Possiblysingle worthy.
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Gorgeous like the cries of a dying water buffalo.
I am curious to know how many dying water buffalo you have heard.
hahaha
If you watch programs like Nature on PBS you'd be surprised.
haha. good one.
p.s. I love stevie's vocals.
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I think Hands on Me, Spring Street, and Home are the best options for singles but My Best, Fools Like Me, and maybe even More Than This could all be possibilities.
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If "More Than This" is a single, it should be the last one. <3
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i havent listened to everything yet but Spring Street brought me to TEARS the first listen. she really touched a nerve with that one, I can't say how much i relate to it.
I cried when I heard Spring Street too! That and Home. The ending of Home is just incredible. I thought it was over and then it starts up again.
I have had Spring Street stuck in my head all day. "Na na na na na..."
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Spring Street intro reminds me of the Clarissa Explains It All Intro.
Other than that, the whole thing's brilliant :D
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i havent listened to everything yet but Spring Street brought me to TEARS the first listen. she really touched a nerve with that one, I can't say how much i relate to it.
I cried when I heard Spring Street too! That and Home. The ending of Home is just incredible. I thought it was over and then it starts up again.
I have had Spring Street stuck in my head all day. "Na na na na na..."
I bet they play Spring Street on "The Hills" lol ... "And everything changes, and friends become strangers. What we hold so dear, slips away. My past keeps on fading, but I'll never forget you. It's hard to see that you're a part of me even when we have to say... na na na"
^ To that show's credit, they do play good music sometimes haha
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i havent listened to everything yet but Spring Street brought me to TEARS the first listen. she really touched a nerve with that one, I can't say how much i relate to it.
I cried when I heard Spring Street too! That and Home. The ending of Home is just incredible. I thought it was over and then it starts up again.
I have had Spring Street stuck in my head all day. "Na na na na na..."
I bet they play Spring Street on "The Hills" lol ... "And everything changes, and friends become strangers. What we hold so dear, slips away. My past keeps on fading, but I'll never forget you. It's hard to see that you're a part of me even when we have to say... na na na"
^ To that show's credit, they do play good music sometimes haha
Ya i think that would be a good song to play on this hills :) they have been playing some okay music lately...
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This Time We were soooo used to the speedy live version. This one was slowed down noticably. When i first listened i was singing way ahead of her. But you get used to it.
I was just about to comment about how slow This Time is! except I can't get used to it :(
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SPRING STREET. ENOUGH SAID.
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My turn!
Nolita Fairytale - Nice introduction to the new sound that she created for herself. Heard it already a lot of times, but holds up nicely.
Hands On Me - Well wasn't expecting this to be so different from what we heard so far, but love it. Really like the mellowness of the first verse. All the odd sounds strangely add a lot to the song. Last piece with the choir is GREAT.
Spring Street - Don't know about this one yet. I like the emotion it tries to convey (and conveys very well) and the subdued nature of both the music and vocals. But due to its repetitive nature and the nananana's I think it might get old quickly.
My Best - Another one I am not sure about. It's beginning to grow on me, but it has a slight childish feel to it, but after the first minute it gets better. Ending is sort of awkward.
Come Undone - Intro is nice, but sort of weird in the context of the rest of the song. The song itself is very poppy, but I like it. Vocals are incredible and it is a showcase of how much her vocals have grown from BnN. Nice lyrics as well. It's interesting to note that without the intro and lengthy outro (which I love) the song would last about two minutes.
The One - Well what to say about this one.... Stevie's vocals are criticized rather heavily, but they don't bother me that much. Yes they are flat and they sound like a myriad of different things (dying water buffalo anyone, my own description can be found in the "it's leaked" topic), but for some reason they don't bug me. Maybe it's because I'm not too interested in this song. It's one of the weaker ones one the album for me. Can't put my finger on why.
Heroes & Thieves - Really like it and I didn't expect I would. Very Ordinary Day as some people already pointed out, but that's a good thing in my book. The vocals are great and the whole song has an amazing uplifting feel to it.
This Time - Personal worst of the album (at the time). It's basically the Promosquad version and it's sloooow. Vocals are completely off at times and resemble shouting at times and it just doesn't work in the framework of the rest of the album. Seems Vanessa matured musically beyond this song but had to include this for some reason. Why, oh why not Best Behaviour (or All is Well for that matter)?????
Fools Like Me - Love it, love it, love it. Was one of my pre-album favourites and now I like it even more, very powerful (and danceable). Strong vocals, great lyrics and a showcase of the new style she adopted. And I disagree that this is purely a sad song, because I think it does have a very positive message.
Home - Great song. Pre-album it did little for me, but listening to the full studio version has given me a greater appreciation of it. First few lines of lyrics are a little 12-years-old, but the general message is a beautiful one. Furthermore, it becomes stronger and stronger as the song progresses adding new layers until it really becomes a beautifully complete song. Don't think I have to say anything about the outro.
More Than This - I have been ranting about this song ever since I heard it. GORGEOUS. No doubt about it and I totally agree with the 11/10 someone else gave it. Great vocals and lyrics and most of all a beautiful message to conclude the album with. The addition of the choir near the end of the song is the single best addition to the entire album. Also great build-up of the song and the music and vocals create an amazingly warm and earthy atmosphere.
If you read this far, congratulations!!!!
I love Heroes & Thieves. There are some weaker songs, but the new style is one I really like even though I was not expecting it. A very pleasant surprise.
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Ok, now that I've had time to let the album sink in, here is my review.
1. Nolita Fairytale- Great introduction to the album. Very unique for Vanessa, and when I first heard it, I thought it would be the only one of its kind on the album. I was completely wrong, and as a result, was disappointed upon my first listen, but now I love it.
2. Hands on Me- I've always hated the lyrics to this song, they're incredibly stupid, but I've always loved the melody. And to hear it fully produced...WOW. The vocals, the drums, the strings...WOW. If this is not the second single, it will be the biggest mistake of Vanessa's life. This song will be a hit. It's singable and fast and beautiful and exhilarating.
3. Spring Street- My only peeve with this song is that it's slower than what I would have liked, without a strong beat. But other than that, I love it. The lyrics are amazing and the message is one that everyone can relate to. It especially hit me at this point in my life. Strangely enough, the "na na na na" thing doesn't get on my nerves. Usually I HATE repetition. Huh.
4. My Best- A huge disappointment the first time I heard it. Now I love it. I love the lyrics and the sentiment of it. And the melody...adore that melody.
5. Come Undone- Another one I didn't like. Now, it's becoming one of my favorites. The piano and the melody are so gorgeous. And it's such a sad song. I love so many of the lines in it, but these in particular really strike a chord: "There are so many people in this lifetime we should never meet. To be here without you now, my life's so incomplete." So sad!!! :(
6. The One- I've always loved this song, and to hear the studio version at last is awesome. Two problems, however: A. Stevie. She sounds bad. Very bad. They should have just used her vocals as backing vocals. Instead it's like a duet. Ugh. The times when Vanessa sings by herself, it's like, "Ah. relief." :) And B. The mix. Sometimes Vanessa's voice gets buried by the instruments, particularly during the "And now you look at me..." part, which sucks, because that's one of my favorite parts.
7. Heroes and Thieves- One of my favorites before, and now I love it even more. I certainly didn't expect it to be like it is, but I LOVE it. It's so sunny and uplifting. One of my favorites on the album.
8. This Time- I like it. Would definitely make a good single. It's very commercial.
9. Fools Like Me- Another one that I loved beforehand. I NEVER expected it to be so fast. I thought it would be very slow. But I LOVE LOVE LOVE what they've done with it. Another favorite.
10. Home- Such a beautiful song. Vanessa's voice, the lyrics, gorgeous. And that piano playing at the end? 8O It's dizzying.
11. More Than This- Without a doubt, the best song on the album, and in my opinion, the best song she's EVER written. EVER. It hit me like a ton of bricks. The first time I heard it, I sobbed. I bawled. I can't believe how good it is. Sheer perfection.[/b]
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I promised to write a review of Heroes and Thieves and so I think I will now. Admitably, upon first listening, I didn't think the album was anything really special. I don't mean that in a negative way - of course I really enjoyed listening to it the first time and the anticipation of what the next one track would sound like. But personally, I didn't get any real amazement until I heard Home. Obviously, I had heard it to some extent thanks to Ghisy hooking me up and the recording Nessa did with Star Lounge Radio. I had always loved this song and there wasn't one second that I thought it could get any better. Well, I was wrong. The thought of this song having strings, a piano solo and a drum rhythm never cross my mind at all. Saying that, these additions make Home even more special that it already is. I can't really beging to explain just how wonderful that piece of music is, especially the piano solo. Its melody and the way the drums are placed - it's just something you'll be humming for many years to come. I love the way Home stops [as if finished] and starts again. Whenever I listen to that piano solo, I keep thinking to myself that I'm really lucky to be able to find music which is so gorgeous. If I had to make a negative critisism, I would say that the very ending sounds too much like Pachabel's Canon.
Let's get back to the start with Nolita Fairytale. Ever since I heard that promo clip of this song, I thought, "that's it - this is going to be such a John Mayer Continuum-like album". I couldn't be more right and suprisingly, I'm not the only one who holds this opinion. This isn't necessarily a bad opinion, in fact it isn't. I like John Mayer but I always thought he was much better sticking at the acoustic-pop stuff. Getting back on Nessa, I believe that this swift change is good for her. It's refreshingly different from both Be Not Nobody and Harmonium. I think she's at a stage where she's producing more singable tracks and she knows she's getting better at creating melody. Nolita Fairytale is no exception and I generally find this song to be completely solid. My only pet peeve is the part where Nessa shouts out, "Hey!", which reminds me too much of Avril. I'm not a fan of Avril and anyone is perfectly entitled to write any lyrics they want to but in my opinion, the "Hey!" part just didn't think. It would be better off without it.
Moving swiftly to Put Your Hands on Me - i've got to say that I don't like the production of this song. I think that it's an awesome song. I loved it ever since she debuted it. I was actually expecting this track to be a solo song with little drumming much like Afterglow was. Instead, I heard the track which appeared to me, as being over-produced. The more I listen to this track the more I can pick things that I don't like. Those strings that appear - upond first listen I didn't think they were too bad but I do now. Let's be honest, it's not the best violin you've heard is it? The sound of the violins sound weak and sound more like added effects rather than actually coming from a wooded and holed instrument. Another thing which I didn't like it how upbeat the song was - the drumming sounded as if it came from a drum machine [I'm a guitar player and that drum machine sound is only too familiar to my ears]. I disliked the way the track included added vocal effects just before the chorus. If you listen real carefully, you can hear some vocal effect thats very subdued and sounds very much like - "Oh boy!" There are two further things that annoy me about this song - the added vocals on the chorus sounded terrible I think - those high vocals harmonized with Nessas. I didn't like that too much and the same goes with the Choir. I don't hate this song but I was just disappointed - way too overproduced.
I'm going to go on one of my favourites, Spring Street. Like many, I didn't like this upon first listen. It was hard to pick a real melody I think. You can always tell whether a song has melody. Likewise, you can always tell when the melody consists mainly of aimless singing trying to stick to a particular tune. This was exactly the first thing that I thought of. However, it grew on me and there is definitely a melody there in the verses, even though it's quite hard to make out. The "Nanana" part doesn't really annoy me but I believe that Nessa could have done better with the verses. My favourite part of this song is the part beginning, "Everything Changes". It sounds like a completely different song but like Home, I think it's a gorgeous piece of music, especially when Nessa sings the note, "Never Forget You". It's that gorgeous voice which really makes me adore her - it's very admirable. It's a very well produced track I think.
The next song is one which is still growing on me. The song is called My Best and it is evidently not her best track but that doesn't matter because that's not what the reference is to :lol:. It's a heartbreaking story about two lovers who have decided to split but never forget they their partner's always gave their best so even though there are no tears it just commemorates a very unfortunate happening. My favourite part of this song is the chorus - no doubt about it. It's sticks in your head and it's very catchy. I also like the way Nessa changes her pitch when she sings, "Never Tell" - if only she did more of those in this track.
The only criticism of this track I can think of is the fact that the verses are just too long. At least that's just what I think. I find myself trying to sing the chorus but falling short just because I didn't expect the verse to be too long. It's a great effort Nessa but I would have enjoyed a much simpler verse.
The next song is Come Undone and i'll be frank, it's alright at best. But by contrast, Come Undone has one of my favourite highlights of the album - i'll comment on this later. I really like the piano bridge but I think the verse is too weak. It's quite like My Best where I didn't know if there was an actual melody or aimless singing. In my opinion, there is very little melody in the beginning verse but I really like her singing when she does actually sing. I think she used the words, "Come Undone" too much. I mentioned briefly that Come Undone had one of my favourite parts of the whole album: this happens beginning, "I tell you what you mean to me" - where she hums out the main bridge. Oh wow - I love music with a lot of humming exactly like this, which is why i'm a huuuge Jessica Harp fan. It's simply beautiful!
Now - let's skip to the worst of the album. The One - let me just stress how much I really, really like this song but I am so disappointed with the way it turned out especially with the vocals Stevie did. A lot of Nessaholics here have expressed the same opinion. Some have suggested not listening to Stevie but how is that really possible? It's there like drowning Cow, mooing. No disrespect to Stevie of course who is legendary but I really didn't like the way she sang The One. The fact that she sang this song the way she did is a major negative criticism. I love everything else but I think Stevie has ruined it for me because I always dread hearing the chorus whenever I listen to this song. So far, editing Stevie's vocals have been a impossible feat for me but i'm still trying, :lol:. One of the things i'm glad about the way The One did turn out was the fact that she played the Alternate version that she debuted live in Japan. This features a difference in the way she uses the chords on the verse, which makes the song sound much more sad as she gradually steps down from each chord she plays. But personally, i'd give anything to have the old version of The One back [the one she debuted Live @ The Living Room] on the condition that Stevie is excluded.
The next track is Heroes and Thieves. In my personal opinion, I think this is quite a neutral track but I didn't think it was that great as to call the album after it. I would be more satisfied if the album was called something like, "Fools Like Me" [*asks for a show of hands of those who agree*]. Even Nolita Fairytale would have sounded better. However, I think there's a reason why elected Heroes and Thieves - would it be perhaps because it's the main theme of the album? I'm pretty sure this is the reason. Heroes and Thieves is a wonderful track and I have to give Nessa a lot of credit for singing and keeping the parts she struggled with - the crack in her voice in the chorus. In some places such as the very end it sounds quite bad but better than the promo version that was released a while ago. However, saying that I think she did a realy good attempt at the second chorus where it was almost perfect. Heroes and Thieves for me is quite a neutral track - amazing melody but there wasn't anything particularly special about it. What I liked most was the bridge towards the end where she builds up a beautiful hum - "without you...ohh..". It's lovely. +10 for more of these on the next album. All these hums are a great way of producing melody in the album.
This time, I have to say is one of my favourites off the new album, if not, my favourite. It's exactly the way I envisioned it. Of course, we all had the promo version but there was some confusion about whether this would actually be the final product. The album version is exactly the promo version and I couldn't ask for more. This song is absolutely perfect, from head to toe. There is nothing negative about it and I really mean it. This along with Home are, in my opinion two very, very solid songs without any fault at all. I'm not being nice, I'm telling you "my truth" [no pun intended]. I love the ending where Nessa sings, "This Time" - it's heartbreaking just listening to it but that crucial element is what makes this song so enjoyable. It's got so much emotion to it and i'm astounded how deep this track is.
Alright, i'm coming towards the end of the album with Fools like me. Initially, this track really took me be suprise because the first time Nessa sang this track, it was quite quite dark. To be completely honest, I was expecting this to be very similar to Afterglow. I couldn't be more wrong. This track is upbeat and I'd like to compare this track to Private Radio. I love the additional male vocals which I believe adds something more depth to this song - is that Stephen? It's also very nice to hear Nessa trying to grow as a singer by singing higher notes than she did previously with Be Not Nobody and Harmonium. All credit goes to Nessa because she's evolving into a better singer with each record.
Last track review before my fucking hands fall off. It's called More than This and I still stand my opinion that it sounds like Over the Rainbow, especially the beginning piano bridge. This track is a really personal and beautiful track, I feel. It's full of melody but I have to say the only thing I didn't like about it was the part beginning, "The Tree grows so thick". Quite simply, it doesn't go. No. I didn't like it. To me, it just sounded like aimless singing which I was quite disappointed about. This is a pretty negative criticism I think. This along with Stevie's Vocals are the only two very bad things about this albums, I believe.
In contrast, good call on the choir.
Overall, i'm astounded. Nessa has outdone herself. I never thought for one second that she couldn't. This album is by far superior to Be Not Nobody and in a total different league to Harmonium. Sure, Harmonium was more technical but i'm glad that Nessa traded that for improved vocals on this album. This album has got me playing it, over 15 times and still counting. Great job Nessa - I will love your music forever.
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
lol. I was expecting some sort of retaliation from the Nessaholics. Simply put, I don't deny there is melody in there but I thought that there was very little in the verses and it was quite hard to pick it up. Towards the second half, however there was a clear melody. In my opinion, the track with the most melody would have to be either This Time or The One.
I haven't actually heard of Josh Rouse but I will have to check him out and compare him to Nessa. Thank You for the recommendation.
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Maybe it's just what we're used to because I thought there was a clear melody all the way through it! But then again I listen to a lot of music similar in style to this particular song and so I might just be used to it.
But I agree that This Time's melody is definitely very structured. Almost annoyingly so, haha.
And Josh Rouse is really good. I only have his Nashville album, but it's excellent. Seriously, every song is good. If I were you I'd check out "My Love Has Gone", "Middle School From", "It's the Nighttime", and "Carolina" in particular. But he does have a new cd he's promoting now. I just haven't gotten to it yet.
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So, here's my opinion on the album now that I've had time to sit down with it.
The album's poorly paced in my opinion. The album is very bright - there's nothing wrong with that, but the album goes from begining to end without straying far from this very stylized and bright sound that's been created. The songs tend to bleed into one another, since they don't differ in intensity, or feel, or style, so the album just moves along in this very straight line and doesn't fluxuate or breathe under its own weight.
~~~
Nolita Fairytale - One of the stronger tracks on the album, and after now being able to compare it the rest of the album I can see why Irv and Vanessa used it as the lead single. This is the only track on the album which doesn't use strings either, the string work throughout the album is awesome, but it would've been nice to see other forms of instrumentation used on some tracks besides strings. This is also the most percussive song she's ever written, and it's well written, so it stands out.
Hands On Me - I really think Put Your Hands On Me would've been a more attention grabbing title, and Vanessa's sexy, even if she isn't walking around in belly shirts, she shouldn't be afraid to exhibit some part of her sexuality. We're all sexual beings, and there's plenty of people that wouldn't mind putting their hands on Vanessa. Haha. Sorry.
This track was the biggest surprise for me production wise, completely different from what I was expecting. I was anticipating a ballad, and woaaah, instead we get smacked down with a catchy uptempo song. This definately needs to be the next single, Irv and Vanessa would be mad not use it as a follow up to Nolita Fairytale.
A friend of mine is also convinced that the begining samples 50 Cent's "I Got Money In The Bank" song, but for some reason I doubt that since Irv's got beef 50. lol
Spring Street - Alright, in my opinion this is the worst track on the album. The na na's are nasally and sung in a monotone manner. It wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't so goddamn prominent throughout the whole song. The song has strong moments (the lyrics are also very good), especially the bridge, but then it just goes back into that boring drawl of "na na na" and I feel that it ruins the song. But other people seem to really enjoy this track, so to each their own. It just better not be a single, because no matter how much song of you like, this is NOT good radio material no matter how you look at it, there are better tracks on this album that can be used as singles.
My Best - This is my favorite song on the album! And I seem to be the only one that insantly took the song upon first listen. This song is the only song that really departs from the other tracks, the production and her approach to writing the song is a change of pace for her, and I think it's the only song where she delves into this other side of her.
It's got a very Regina Spektor-ish vibe to the song, but surpasses any of Regina's work in my opinion (Regina's too goddamn artsy fartsy for my tastes). I love how she hums the melody, it's extremely cute and endearing. My only complaint is that the song is so short! And when it finally builds up and she sings, "It's like a promise kept, it's like you never left" which is an extremely strong and catchy moment in the song, it's over before you realize it. The verses are a little long, and the chorus is too short.
But I guess that's what I like about it in the end, it's a little unconventional in it's format.
Come Undone - I love the begining of this song, I absolutely love organ and the filtered effect she uses on it is great I think. When I first heard the song, I thought this was going to be a dark and brooding track, but the organ is a bit of a false start, you'd think the song would continue in that direction but then it does a 180 and goes back into this very bright and light sound present throughout the album, which is frusterating.
The song however is very good, even if it is bright, however I don't think it's single material. She only starts singing 1 minute into the song, and she only continues to sing for 2 minutes, and then closes the song with an outro that lasts a minute and a half. And it's only because the song features very little singing that I don't think it'd make a good single, even though it's very catchy.
The One - So, here we go. This song is amazing, the intro is awesome, and the production is great. BUT. Stevie Nick's is not an asset for Vanessa during this song, Stevie is a distraction. Their voices do not harmonize well at all. Stevie has a tendancy to sound like a billie goat when she sings, and her register is a lot lower than Vanessa's, they have very different voices that do not blend and work together well at all.
And it's a shame, because this really is a great song, but Stevie does more harm than good I feel.
Heroes & Thieves - The title track is awesome, what more can you say. This song has a very folky vibe to it, for some reason I could totally see River Dance performed to this song, hahaha. I absolutely love the bridge in this song, it's the songs strongest moment I think. Vanessa has a bit of trouble performing this song live, but I think she pulls it off here (with the help of some studio work, lol). This song has a great message, it's like a coming of age piece, great great song.
This Time - Alright, I don't like This Time, even when she debuted it for the first time I still didn't like it. Linda Perry was great when she first hit the scene as a producer working with people such as Pink and Christina Aguilera, but now this is stuff we've all heard before. This song is traditional standard Linda Perry ballad affair, and nothing more. It's uninspired, conventional and boring. It's also got some pretty cliche lyrics. "And when it hurts - I cry", oh please, whatever. These lyrics piss me off.
Fools Like Me - Okay, this is an awesomely dark and poignant song live. WHAT IS UP WITH THE STUDIO VERSION. lol The whistling during the begining completely threw me off, it sounds like the music for those stupid Vehix.com commercials, you know, like the one with the dog and the whistling. It's stupid.
I like the little electronic nuances they throw in, and this is a fun song, but jesus, it completely alters the tone of the song, this is the one song that had the potential to be a dark track, but nooo, we got more of this bright happy sound, again.
Home - Beautiful song, everyone loves this song, you'd have to be an idiot to not like it, the outro is beautiful, there's really not much I can say about this song that no one else already hasn't.
More Than This - I like More Than This, I love the harpsichord at the end and such. But I really don't think this is the song of Vanessa's career, that's very much an overstatement but it is her strongest album closer thus far.
~~~
I was disapointed that there wasn't a piano only track, this album is heavily heavily produced, and a piano only track would have given the album a short moment to breathe and relax under all it's production. That's another problem with this album, this is album is so heavily produced that it suffocates the songs under all its heavy production. No matter how epic a song is in scale, the production still constricts it.
Overall this is a strong album, and I really like it, but I just wish it was a more balanced album, it's very in your face throughout the entire listen. It's like, when your listening to it you can see Vanessa popping up on your shoulder being all, "LOOK AT HOW AMAZING THE PRODUCTION IS. LISTEN. SEE. I'M BACK BITCHES. GIVE THEM MORE STRINGS - MOOORE STRIIINGS" And then she'll start cackling, because apparently she cackles according to The Post. lol
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So, here's my opinion on the album now that I've had time to sit down with it.
The album's poorly paced in my opinion. The album is very bright - there's nothing wrong with that, but the album goes from begining to end without straying far from this very stylized and bright sound that's been created. The songs tend to bleed into one another, since they don't differ in intensity, or feel, or style, so the album just moves along in this very straight line and doesn't fluxuate or breathe under its own weight.
~~~
Nolita Fairytale - One of the stronger tracks on the album, and after now being able to compare it the rest of the album I can see why Irv and Vanessa used it as the lead single. This is the only track on the album which doesn't use strings either, the string work throughout the album is awesome, but it would've been nice to see other forms of instrumentation used on some tracks besides strings. This is also the most percussive song she's ever written, and it's well written, so it stands out.
Hands On Me - I really think Put Your Hands On Me would've been a more attention grabbing title, and Vanessa's sexy, even if she isn't walking around in belly shirts, she shouldn't be afraid to exhibit some part of her sexuality. We're all sexual beings, and there's plenty of people that wouldn't mind putting their hands on Vanessa. Haha. Sorry.
This track was the biggest surprise for me production wise, completely different from what I was expecting. I was anticipating a ballad, and woaaah, instead we get smacked down with a catchy uptempo song. This definately needs to be the next single, Irv and Vanessa would be mad not use it as a follow up to Nolita Fairytale.
A friend of mine is also convinced that the begining samples 50 Cent's "I Got Money In The Bank" song, but for some reason I doubt that since Irv's got beef 50. lol
Spring Street - Alright, in my opinion this is the worst track on the album. The na na's are nasally and sung in a monotone manner. It wouldn't have been so bad if they weren't so goddamn prominent throughout the whole song. The song has strong moments (the lyrics are also very good), especially the bridge, but then it just goes back into that boring drawl of "na na na" and I feel that it ruins the song. But other people seem to really enjoy this track, so to each their own. It just better not be a single, because no matter how much song of you like, this is NOT good radio material no matter how you look at it, there are better tracks on this album that can be used as singles.
My Best - This is my favorite song on the album! And I seem to be the only one that insantly took the song upon first listen. This song is the only song that really departs from the other tracks, the production and her approach to writing the song is a change of pace for her, and I think it's the only song where she delves into this other side of her.
It's got a very Regina Spektor-ish vibe to the song, but surpasses any of Regina's work in my opinion (Regina's too goddamn artsy fartsy for my tastes). I love how she hums the melody, it's extremely cute and endearing. My only complaint is that the song is so short! And when it finally builds up and she sings, "It's like a promise kept, it's like you never left" which is an extremely strong and catchy moment in the song, it's over before you realize it. The verses are a little long, and the chorus is too short.
But I guess that's what I like about it in the end, it's a little unconventional in it's format.
Come Undone - I love the begining of this song, I absolutely love organ and the filtered effect she uses on it is great I think. When I first heard the song, I thought this was going to be a dark and brooding track, but the organ is a bit of a false start, you'd think the song would continue in that direction but then it does a 180 and goes back into this very bright and light sound present throughout the album, which is frusterating.
The song however is very good, even if it is bright, however I don't think it's single material. She only starts singing 1 minute into the song, and she only continues to sing for 2 minutes, and then closes the song with an outro that lasts a minute and a half. And it's only because the song features very little singing that I don't think it'd make a good single, even though it's very catchy.
The One - So, here we go. This song is amazing, the intro is awesome, and the production is great. BUT. Stevie Nick's is not an asset for Vanessa during this song, Stevie is a distraction. Their voices do not harmonize well at all. Stevie has a tendancy to sound like a billie goat when she sings, and her register is a lot lower than Vanessa's, they have very different voices that do not blend and work together well at all.
And it's a shame, because this really is a great song, but Stevie does more harm than good I feel.
Heroes & Thieves - The title track is awesome, what more can you say. This song has a very folky vibe to it, for some reason I could totally see River Dance performed to this song, hahaha. I absolutely love the bridge in this song, it's the songs strongest moment I think. Vanessa has a bit of trouble performing this song live, but I think she pulls it off here (with the help of some studio work, lol). This song has a great message, it's like a coming of age piece, great great song.
This Time - Alright, I don't like This Time, even when she debuted it for the first time I still didn't like it. Linda Perry was great when she first hit the scene as a producer working with people such as Pink and Christina Aguilera, but now this is stuff we've all heard before. This song is traditional standard Linda Perry ballad affair, and nothing more. It's uninspired, conventional and boring. It's also got some pretty cliche lyrics. "And when it hurts - I cry", oh please, whatever. These lyrics piss me off.
Fools Like Me - Okay, this is an awesomely dark and poignant song live. WHAT IS UP WITH THE STUDIO VERSION. lol The whistling during the begining completely threw me off, it sounds like the music for those stupid Vehix.com commercials, you know, like the one with the dog and the whistling. It's stupid.
I like the little electronic nuances they throw in, and this is a fun song, but jesus, it completely alters the tone of the song, this is the one song that had the potential to be a dark track, but nooo, we got more of this bright happy sound, again.
Home - Beautiful song, everyone loves this song, you'd have to be an idiot to not like it, the outro is beautiful, there's really not much I can say about this song that no one else already hasn't.
More Than This - I like More Than This, I love the harpsichord at the end and such. But I really don't think this is the song of Vanessa's career, that's very much an overstatement but it is her strongest album closer thus far.
~~~
I was disapointed that there wasn't a piano only track, this album is heavily heavily produced, and a piano only track would have given the album a short moment to breathe and relax under all it's production. That's another problem with this album, this is album is so heavily produced that it suffocates the songs under all its heavy production. No matter how epic a song is in scale, the production still constricts it.
Overall this is a strong album, and I really like it, but I just wish it was a more balanced album, it's very in your face throughout the entire listen. It's like, when your listening to it you can see Vanessa popping up on your shoulder being all, "LOOK AT HOW AMAZING THE PRODUCTION IS. LISTEN. SEE. I'M BACK BITCHES. GIVE THEM MORE STRINGS - MOOORE STRIIINGS" And then she'll start cackling, because apparently she cackles according to The Post. lol
I really don't think this album is overproduced. Be Not Nobody was; it was overproduced to death. This one is every bit as organic as Harmonium...it just has way more layers. It's more complex, but I think that makes it amazing.
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I don't mind the more upbeat feel, but in my opinion it doesn't really go with the feeling we've been getting from her live performances of the songs- the album art- and the lyrics of all the songs. It's like she took all these dark songs and brightened them up with lively piano and what I think of as "twinkling" effects- or cutesy things that add a more happy tone.
Idk if she's trying to be ironic or if she just wants to make the songs more appealing- and I like a lot of the songs both ways- but I wonder if she is going to stay with the dark, solemn tone on tours.
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seems the more i listen to this album the more i love it
damn songs are growing on me
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My review of Come Undone has changed slightly. It's really growing on me.
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
I love spring street too! its just so good!!!
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
I love spring street too! its just so good!!!
it just might be the best song she has ever written
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
I love spring street too! its just so good!!!
it just might be the best song she has ever written
not a chance
"home" is
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
I love spring street too! its just so good!!!
it just might be the best song she has ever written
not a chance
"home" is
\0 \0 \0
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BarmySandwich, I realised in your review [which is very good!] You called This Time, The One :D
Just pointing that out.
But after listening to the album at least 20 times over, i've noticed that My Best is actually really good :oops:
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BarmySandwich, I realised in your review [which is very good!] You called This Time, The One :D
Just pointing that out.
But after listening to the album at least 20 times over, i've noticed that My Best is actually really good :oops:
Lies!
:oops:
Thanks for the compliments. I love My Best too but as stated, I think the verses are too long.
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01)Nolita Fairytale - this is a g0od c0meback s0ng! the drumbeat and the simple pian0 mel0dy just can't get 0ut 0f my head. 9/10
02)Hands 0n Me - As f0r the 0fficial studi0 versi0n, it turns 0ut m0re catchy and the v0cal impr0ved. the 0chestra and 0ther extra instruments just hit me! 8/10
03)Spring Street - 0k. this is s0mething different! this s0ng isn't like any 0ther typical V s0ngs. its s0mething new. and i need s0me adjustment time t0 accept this kind 0f s0ng. but its getting int0 me! 7/10
04)My Best - n0w i understand why V wanted t0 pick this s0ng as the lead single (but it wasn't). its s0mething h0nest as the mel0dy is simple and just nice. i l0ve the way this s0ng fused s0me 0f the mel0dies fr0m 0thers s0ng. 8/10
05)Come Und0ne - the pian0 in this s0ng is just fantastic! and the v0cals are the best in this s0ng! i guess its just t0o much percussi0n in it. effecting the harm0ny 0f this s0ng. 8/10
06)The 0ne - this is my fav0urite s0ng (bef0re i heard the studi0 versi0n) maybe v0ice 0f Stevie ruined the beauty 0f this s0ng! this is a really sad s0ng but it turns 0ut n0t that sad! blame 0n Stevie! 9/10
07)Her0es & Thieves - This is the sec0nd best s0ng in this album! i am s0 in l0ve with this s0ng! A perfect 10! 10/10
08)This Time - i just n0t s0 int0 this s0ng. eventh0ugh this is the m0st wanted s0ng by the 0ther fans. 6/10
09)F0ols Like Me - this sl0w s0ng bec0mes a catchy s0ng. wh0 did this? Genius lyrics th0ugh. 8/10
10)Home - Great great great pian0 skills! i bet the best next single! great ballad s0ng! 9/10
11)More Than this - The best s0ng ever written by V! i d0n't kn0w h0w t0 explain but i think its the best s0ng i've ever heard and n0 s0ng will beat this f0rever! A perfect ending. 11/10
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what's with the zeros? It's really annoying, whats wrong with o... :?
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what's with the zeros? It's really annoying, whats wrong with o... :?
I second the motion.
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what's with the zeros? It's really annoying, whats wrong with o... :?
His keyboard is broken and the "o" key doesn't work. That's my best guess. Oh btw [to the other dude], you might want to try and take the keys out and make sure there are no hairs in the components of the keyboard - that's the reason why it probably won't work. You'll be suprised what hairs can do - they are the most common reason why keys don't work or aren't functioning properly.
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what's with the zeros? It's really annoying, whats wrong with o... :?
His keyboard is broken and the "o" key doesn't work. That's my best guess. Oh btw [to the other dude], you might want to try and take the keys out and make sure there are no hairs in the components of the keyboard - that's the reason why it probably won't work. You'll be suprised what hairs can do - they are the most common reason why keys don't work or aren't functioning properly.
But they use "o" in it alot as well.
F0ols Like Me
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Are you all joking about Spring Street not being melodic? You MUST be joking. I would argue it's one of (if not) the MOST melodic song on the album. This song gets stuck in my head already and I have only known it for less than a day. And I don't just mean the "na na na" part- the verses I even find catchy.
If you've ever heard Josh Rouse's Nashville album, and you probably haven't because he's not very well known at all, Spring Street sounds very much like some of the songs on that album.
I call them breezy - because they are so melodic.
I love spring street too! its just so good!!!
it just might be the best song she has ever written
not a chance
"home" is
i'm gonna have to disagree.
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Spring Street intro reminds me of the Clarissa Explains It All Intro.
Other than that, the whole thing's brilliant :D
http://youtube.com/watch?v=XugpoY6cXhY
ahahaha YOU ARE AMAZING I feel like doing a copy/paste and throwing the ones from clarissa explains it all in there.
omfg... love you[/url]
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Lol hairy keyboards! Haha yea ppl and thier little idiosyncrasies....
:D
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The record is amazing. My favourite is My best. I'm so in love with it. But i could cry the entire time i'm listening to it because it's so good. I didn't liked the live version of The one with Stevie but the Studiorecording blows me away. I love everything at the record. Amzing Amazing Amazing
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sorry about the 'zeros' thing...
i'm just used to it..
i'll try not to use it...
:lol: :lol: :lol:
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my view:
I like the album. It is sooo much better than Be Not Nobody. But I will still of course listen to Be Not Nobody the same. SHe has just come a LONG way since that album.
I like every song on this record. I mean each song probabley has something that not everyone likes. Hence The One and Stevies goat voice. But I think at some ceratin points its really nice. I just look at it as us being lucky to even be able to listen to this songs as a cd. I am prefectly content with the cd.
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Ok... this review is not my final word on the album...
One word... Masterpiece...
Every song has a quiet psuedo meaning... like the pages of a book...
I actually dig Come Undone... which with its uber extended intro and outro make the song like a "bridge" ... i mean i take it like... you can now take a break and listen to some really soft instrumental music... I totally love it...
Home... Blew me off... I was like ok... pretty much what I've heard... but then the extended outro where there is this amazing piano riff that reminds me of when she did the cover of "Where the streets have no name"...
Stevie doesnt really blow the song... its pretty ok...I dont really mind it...
but "More than this" is such an amazing song... If the album is supposed to be something like the chapters of a book... More than this just screams "HERES A HAPPY ENDING!!!"
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I didn't download the new songs, only the ones that we have heard before.
At first, I hated 'The One'. It's alright now. I am getting used to Stevie's vocals. I would so prefer it be just Vanessa, of course.
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FIRST WANNA SAY:
Why Oh Why
...isnt "All is well" on the album???? (++++++ 6/6 from me)
That song is my personal favorite and it couldve been a great first singel. REALLY!!! Oh well
1 Nolita Fairytale- An ok singel, but should never been the first singel. Never.
its just to simpel in a way... Not deep at all.. almost shallow lyrics. Average producton and average video.. Why cant they step it up a little for the first singel???
++++
2 Hands on me. I heard it live the first time, with just the piano, and i thought what a great song that could be with a full orchestra with lots of violins and cellos and everything. But NO!! instead we get a pop song that seems just fake from beginning to end. The violins are really boring and very different from her first two album. Its like they dont wanna try to make the violins interesting. Its not. it repeats itself in a very easy setting.
WHO PRODUCED THIS SHIT??? REALLY??? The drums are also just as bad. AND NOW I WONDER...: is it all effects from machines?? the drums and violins?? because it doesnt sound real at all??
Really bad produced and i swear i couldve done better.
I miss some kind of "ordinary day" production.
++
3 Spring street. A good song. Original lyrics. But the beginning is really bad. A low tone for Vanessa doesnt always work.
But the song has a really good a well done production.
+++++
4 My best. Really good opening. "We scream and shout and try to make it last".. And I love the simplicity of the song. Good production...BUT She ruined the song singing after chorus "like a promise guest, its like you never left, ...) That just horrible...
+++
5 Come undone. 40 sec into the song it starts, with a beautiful piano.
Weak chorus. But i like the fact that the piano takes over the last minute and a half. Nice to lisson to...
++++
6 The one. My favorite on the album. THIS IS THE NEXT SINGEL, IT MUST BE... it cant be any oher way...honestly... This song could be huge..A hit!
I can imagine Vanessa and Stevie making the video in a fancy old age style party where they sing infront of an overclass dinner audiens.... Anyways..
Great production. A beautiful opening where both of their voices is just great together. Really good bridge..
All of it is perfect. Except Vanessa didnt write this song 6/6
++++++
7 Heroes and thieves. When i heard this song live first time i thought it sounded like a children fairytale song...Whatever that is... Its not a hit.
A good song. Good production.
++++
8 This time. The worst song of the record!!!! HoW the #""$ could she miss the rythm of the chorus, or is it the producers fault??? Shes actually out of tune some places and it sound like she couldne care less. When i first heard the song live i thought the song was good, and the bridge part was really could, with the piano, but that piano riff drowns in violins...
And the song is slowed down to absolut minimum. And thats bad. When the the sceond chorus started i had already sung the song finished...
Really bad production!!! 1 out of 6
+
9 Fools like me. I really didnt expect a up tempo song, cause it sound a little bit more slow live. But its cool and i like it. Great lyrics. Ok production that again drown in violins.
+++
10 Home. One of the slow songs on the record. I love the lyrics. Original and creative.. The song is building up from piano in the beginning to everything at the end.. I really like this .. It should be the third singel!!
+++++
11 More then this. Finally, a good song that i didnt hear until i heard this album. It could also be a singel. Really good piano that got me hooked from the very beginning. One thing i would change is the piano in the secong verse, that should take off a little more... A perfect closure for this album.
+++++
All in all im a little bit dissappointed.
A lot of really bad production here... And thats something that wont grow on me, lke Harmonium did because it was produced perfect...
Funny that Vanessas dog ends this album with a couple of barks...!!!
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oh...well I love the album. I don't like putting CD on such a high standard. To me I would not want to compare Heroes and Theives to Harmonium. the theme to Harmonium is WAY different to Heroes and thieves. So of curse when you compare them its not fair. I just like to see how the album is by itself. I like this album for its theme and I don't think any track is over produced. I mean she had more control over the music this time around so I am sure she meant to do some of the songs the way they are.
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2 Hands on me. I heard it live the first time, with just the piano, and i thought what a great song that could be with a full orchestra with lots of violins and cellos and everything. But NO!! instead we get a pop song that seems just fake from beginning to end. The violins are really boring and very different from her first two album. Its like they dont wanna try to make the violins interesting. Its not. it repeats itself in a very easy setting.
WHO PRODUCED THIS SHIT??? REALLY??? The drums are also just as bad. AND NOW I WONDER...: is it all effects from machines?? the drums and violins?? because it doesnt sound real at all??
Really bad produced and i swear i couldve done better.
I miss some kind of "ordinary day" production.
++
Bzzz.... Wrong answer. Try again later!
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2 Hands on me. I heard it live the first time, with just the piano, and i thought what a great song that could be with a full orchestra with lots of violins and cellos and everything. But NO!! instead we get a pop song that seems just fake from beginning to end. The violins are really boring and very different from her first two album. Its like they dont wanna try to make the violins interesting. Its not. it repeats itself in a very easy setting.
WHO PRODUCED THIS SHIT??? REALLY??? The drums are also just as bad. AND NOW I WONDER...: is it all effects from machines?? the drums and violins?? because it doesnt sound real at all??
Really bad produced and i swear i couldve done better.
I miss some kind of "ordinary day" production.
++
Bzzz.... Wrong answer. Try again later!
I actually agree with him. The violins sounded terrible and I hated the overall production of the song. I agree - I miss the orchestral arrangement of Be Not Nobody - Ordinary Day is an example of what great production can do. There were so many things wrong with it, in my opinion. This is what I wrote in my review:
Moving swiftly to Put Your Hands on Me - i've got to say that I don't like the production of this song. I think that it's an awesome song. I loved it ever since she debuted it. I was actually expecting this track to be a solo song with little drumming much like Afterglow was. Instead, I heard the track which appeared to me, as being over-produced. The more I listen to this track the more I can pick things that I don't like. Those strings that appear - upond first listen I didn't think they were too bad but I do now. Let's be honest, it's not the best violin you've heard is it? The sound of the violins sound weak and sound more like added effects rather than actually coming from a wooded and holed instrument. Another thing which I didn't like it how upbeat the song was - the drumming sounded as if it came from a drum machine [I'm a guitar player and that drum machine sound is only too familiar to my ears]. I disliked the way the track included added vocal effects just before the chorus. If you listen real carefully, you can hear some vocal effect thats very subdued and sounds very much like - "Oh boy!" There are two further things that annoy me about this song - the added vocals on the chorus sounded terrible I think - those high vocals harmonized with Nessas. I didn't like that too much and the same goes with the Choir. I don't hate this song but I was just disappointed - way too overproduced.
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I was driving through a nice part of Cincy today with my windows down and blasting HOM, and I was very moved. I think the arrangement is beautiful. I feel like the production is amazing. I love the strings, especially on the last chorus. It's different from a lot of her old stuff, but you just can't expect it to be a clone of BnN or Harmonium. I think it's my second favorite song on the CD.
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
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Yeah, the violin sounds fake.
But I like the song nonetheless.
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In HOM, even the piano sounds a bit muffled/out of tune... I think anything similar in the violin section might be on purpose. It sounds sort of stilted... but I like it. I really like the "ticking" sound on the verses.
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I think the rewinding sounds you hear in the beginning of HOM are weird, but you get used to it. There are A LOT of layers in the song, I just LOVE it. And I get goosebumps everytime the choir kicks in.
Lovely song. Exept for the 'hey's' every now and then it was really unnecessary, just like the 'hey' was in Nolita.
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"hands on me" was the one song that i allowed myself to listen to off h&t so far.
the first time i heard it, i was disappointed. especially after having so many beautiful live recordings of it. something seemed a little off about the song... and harmysandwhich dissected that rather thoroughly, so i won't.
but it's kind of like nolita fairytale, it kind of grows on you.
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
The strings are TWANGY. I think it was done on purpose because of her reference to the Dalai Lama, it has that ethnic quality to it. It was done on purpose......did anyone else notice that?
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
The strings are TWANGY. I think it was done on purpose because of her reference to the Dalai Lama, it has that ethnic quality to it. It was done on purpose......did anyone else notice that?
Good interpretation but if it was done because of that, I think they ruined it.
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
The strings are TWANGY. I think it was done on purpose because of her reference to the Dalai Lama, it has that ethnic quality to it. It was done on purpose......did anyone else notice that?
Good interpretation but if it was done because of that, I think they ruined it.
They didn't ruin it. The song is fucking amazing.
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
The strings are TWANGY. I think it was done on purpose because of her reference to the Dalai Lama, it has that ethnic quality to it. It was done on purpose......did anyone else notice that?
Good interpretation but if it was done because of that, I think they ruined it.
They didn't ruin it. The song is fucking amazing.
Opinions are opinions. :lol:
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The problem with the strings on HoM is that either a) they used a terrible synth string program, or b) the strings are out of tune. The highs sound very tinny, also.
The strings are TWANGY. I think it was done on purpose because of her reference to the Dalai Lama, it has that ethnic quality to it. It was done on purpose......did anyone else notice that?
Good interpretation but if it was done because of that, I think they ruined it.
They didn't ruin it. The song is fucking amazing.
Opinions are opinions. :lol:
True True. Forgive me for defensive a second ago.
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Spring street is the new afterglow
nolita fairytale is the new white houses
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Spring street is the new afterglow
nolita fairytale is the new white houses
Ummm, idk about Spring Street being the new Afterglow. Spring Street is my favorite song on H&T so far and I absolutely do not like the song Afterglow. Afterglow is a love song. Spring Street is not a love song. They aren't even similar. lol
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Okay, I'm going to go on a mini-rant.
It's sorta bothering how people are saying "Spring Street is the new Afterglow... Fools Like Me is the new Private Radio... HaT is the new OD, etc etc etc" Spring Street is the new Spring Street. FlM is the new FlM.... I'll admit that HaT does sound like OD, but it's in 3/4, so HA!
I don't think many people are realizing how different these songs are in terms of the arrangements and the production and the writing style. And it's not fair to just label a fresh song as just a rehash of an old song. It's not fair to V. These songs have a life of their own and they are each unique in their own way.
[/rant]
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The album is terrific. I think Irv had a slight negative influence. Doesn't compare to Harmonium, unfortunately.
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Spring street is the new afterglow
nolita fairytale is the new white houses
true. well in my sense
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Nolita Fairytale: 8/10
Hands on Me: 7.5/10
Spring Street: 9.5/10
My Best: 5.5/10
Come Undone: 8/10
The One: 8.5/10
Heroes and Thieves: 11/10
This Time: 7.5/10
Fools Like Me: 8/10
Home: 9/10
More Than This: 11/10
Overall: 8.5/10
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Nolita Fairytale: 8/10
Hands on Me: 9/10
Spring Street: 9.5/10
Fools Like Me: 8/10
Home: 10/10
Come Undone: 8/10
The One: 8/10
Heroes and Thieves: 9/10
This Time: 9/10
My Best: 9/10
More Than This: 9/10
Overall: 9/10
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Nolita Fairtyale: Kind of the perfect first single for her. Shows what she has been doing with her time and it's mainstream enough. Love the structure of the song. Not a huge fan of dropping Stevie's name in the middle, but whatever.
Hands on Me: The drum is a bit drowsy; sounds like a drum machine from the beginning. Not a huge fan of the production on this song. Makes the song a bit dull; this song was so gorgeous live. I do adore the strings. King of a huge 80's vibe when the chorus hits. Bit of a Stevie vibe too. Weird. Would make an excellent second single though, as it is very catchy.
Spring Street: This song sounds soooo familiar for some reason. Can't place it, but I've heard some combination of these notes before. The verses are so lyrically beautiful and the chorus is kind of a letdown as a result. It's a very good song though. Pretty production.
My Best: While I don't think this song is as good as Vanessa does, it's a pretty decent little song. It's not a really memorable song, but it's quite sweet. Strange 80's vibe here too. The production is excellent.
Come Undone: This is one of my favorite tracks off the album. Excellent single material. It's quirky enough to stay true to her roots, but has enough mainstream appeal that it could do very well on radio. Could be a massive hit if it's promoted properly, at least in my opinion.
The One: I actually do not have a huge problem with the Stevie vocals. I prefer the live versions to the actual studio version though. This was probably my favorite song of all the live versions; it was the one I was looking forward to the most. Didn't live up to my personal hype, but it's a strong track.
Heroes & Thieves: Such a majestic song. I used to be an Irish dancer and the strings in the background make me laugh as they sound very similar to songs I used to dance to. The production is ace on this one as well. Her voice sounds a lot better on the studio version than in other versions I have heard.
This Time: Such a disappointment! Loved this song and they completely slowed it down to the point where it just a bore. Her voice sounds so off in the bridge; she's practically shouting. Completely forgettable.
Fools Like Me: Ugh, not a fan of what they did to this song either. I was expecting Fools Like Me to be the darkest song on the album, but it's probably brighter than half of these songs. It's still a good song, but like some of the others... I prefer it live.
Home: Her strongest song on the album. Lyrically and musically, it's beautiful. It's a bit like a nursery rhyme at the beginning and that kind of drags me in. The outro is fantastic. There's a moment though... get a total Styx vibe. Would make an excellent final single, in my opinion.
More Than This: Beautiful work here, from lyrics, to music, to production. Stunning song. I will have to ditto the rest of you who said you can see it in movie trailers and the like; it's perfect for that. "And the tree grows so thick..." is one of my favorite parts of the song. The way she sings it... love it.
Grades:
Nolita Fairytale: 9/10
Hands on Me: 9/10
Spring Street: 9.5/10
My Best: 8.5/10
Come Undone: 10/10
The One: 9/10
Heroes & Thieves: 9.5/10
This Time: 6/10
Fools Like Me: 7/10
Home: 10/10
More Than This: 10/10
For an overall grade of: 88.63, B+. She might get an A with repeated listenings. :wink:
This is her best overall work to date. I loved Harmonium, but it had its major faults in my eyes. It was a strong album, but Heroes & Thieves tops it, no doubt. At least, to me. :D
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
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Oh and one last thing, I HATE Stevie in the vocals! Arrrggh she sounds so low and croaky and clashes with Vanessa's voice. And Stevie does sound like a dying water buffalo... lol (that's a quote from someone else..)
And unfortunately My Chemical Romance came up with the "soldier marching theme" first, otherwise More than This would have been the PERFECT song. It's still awesome :)
Katherine Ann Marie xox
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And unfortunately My Chemical Romance came up with the "soldier marching theme" first, otherwise More than This would have been the PERFECT song. It's still awesome :)
Katherine Ann Marie xox
MCR has a song where they mentions soldiers coming home?
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The theme of war/soldiers etc not just in the lyrics, but in the music. Hence the title "The black parade" You know, how there is a chorus of people singing at the end like a real "marching band" lol and with that drum beat... and everything... Just the whole theme! MCR don't specifically talk about Soldiers coming home, but they use the theme of soldiers and ideas associated with them as a basis for their recent stuff.
I'm not really a big fan of them btw.... Bit too emo...
But anyway its just the idea.
But yea just a thought. More than this is still my Fav song tho! :D
Oh and I suppose the idea that Vanessa is trying to get across is a much more postive uplifting one than that of MCR... for obvious reasons.
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And has anyone noticed the dog barking at the end? Haha its right at the end and I bet its her dog! lol :D
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
I couldnt agree more in what youre saying!!!
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I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar.
The stuff does have a similar feel, but it is a concept album and i got the impression it was all supposed to fit together like that,kind of like the chapters of a book: the same feel, but different materials.....
Personally,I agree to some degree with that statement quoted..but i dont feel it as a bad thing..i love harmonium for it's variety and i love heroes and thieves for the way it all fits together...
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Yay! Thankyou!
Have you listened to Regina Spektor's new CD? You know there are a few songs on it that sound CREEPILY similar to Nessa's old stuff. 8O
"Apres Moi" is an awesome song- its similar to Papa and the Wreckage Combined. But I still Love our Nessa the most! ^_^
Katherine Ann Marie xox
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Okay, I'm going to go on a mini-rant.
It's sorta bothering how people are saying "Spring Street is the new Afterglow... Fools Like Me is the new Private Radio... HaT is the new OD, etc etc etc" Spring Street is the new Spring Street. FlM is the new FlM.... I'll admit that HaT does sound like OD, but it's in 3/4, so HA!
I don't think many people are realizing how different these songs are in terms of the arrangements and the production and the writing style. And it's not fair to just label a fresh song as just a rehash of an old song. It's not fair to V. These songs have a life of their own and they are each unique in their own way.
[/rant]
Jophess, we don't mean it literally. We're just making an analogy that Fools Like Me was what Private Radio was to Harmonium. It's the death of the record if you will. Whoever think they are similar sounding needs a headcheck.
Edit: :lol:, Liquid, of course. No harm done, we're all fans of hers.
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I like the indian drumbeats at the end of HOM. Man this song is so good.
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I like the indian drumbeats at the end of HOM. Man this song is so good.
dot. dot. dot.
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I wanna know who produced it. My guess is Irv..
-
To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
How do you know all these songs NEED the production to back them up? The only one we've heard live so far that I agree weighs heavily on production to sound complete is "Nolita Fairytale". We've heard This Time, The One, Hands On Me, Home, Heroes and Thieves and Fools Like Me live- and to be honest, with the exception of Hands On Me (imo, bc I like the studio version) I think that all the live versions DO sound complete. I especially like the live versions of Fools Like Me. And that's like half of the album. So idk what you are saying in that respect. We haven't even heard the other songs live, how can we judge?
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mmhmm true I don't know I think its just us having heard some of the songs live like you said it just effects the way you think of it with Nolita Fairytale we heard it live than a few days later we had the single
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I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar.
The stuff does have a similar feel, but it is a concept album and i got the impression it was all supposed to fit together like that,kind of like the chapters of a book: the same feel, but different materials.....
Personally,I agree to some degree with that statement quoted..but i dont feel it as a bad thing..i love harmonium for it's variety and i love heroes and thieves for the way it all fits together...
It's really not much of a concept album really, it seems like this whole concept notion was an idea she created as an after thought. If someone listened to this record not knowing it was a "concept album", there would really be nothing to tell the listener that it's actually a concept record.
It seems like she originally wrote a batch of songs, and then was like, "Oh, I think it'd be neat to create a concept around them." And then she started throwing these songs out that didn't fit this concept, like All Is well and Best Behavior, the song themselves aren't really much of a concept. They work well individually. Concept records usually contain songs that do not work individually.
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i want to know how we are positive which songs linda perry even produced. i was under the impression that all we know for sure is This Time and Spring Street?
Stephan co-wrote Come Undone, Hands On Me, and Home, and I was pretty sure he helped out on The One as well. I saw him doing production for Hands On Me and The One, and I'm guessing he might have done Home and Come Undone as well since one of his friends does background vocals, plus he cowrote them and he's a bit of a control freak.
Plus Irv was a producer for a lot of it.
So I think we're making some generalizations here about linda perry overcomplicating Vanessa or making her too poppy. But imo V has been pop from the beginning... why is anyone surprised?
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Am I the only one who believes this record is an Alternative record rather than a pop one? It's very similar to how John Mayer's Continuum ended up as.
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hi out there... i'm new! :D
anyway, i'm not a native english speaker, so i hope you'll forgive my mistakes.
for me h&t was a little disappointment. nolita fairytale (my favorite song) is certainly adorable but when i listen to the rest, i miss something... i don't know. my rating:
nolita fairytale: 10/10
hands on me: 7/10
spring street: 6/10
my best: 8/10
come undone: 7/10
the one: 6/10
heroes & thieves: 8/10
this time: 6/10
fools like me: 9/10
home: 9/10
more than this: 9.5/10
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I really love this cd. Granted, I still have listened to the new songs, I'm waiting until the CD drops. However, I've been listening to it in my car nonstop and it really is an amazing CD. Like it's been said before, it's not fair to compare it to Harmonium (sheer genius) because this album is like a storybook.
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
How do you know all these songs NEED the production to back them up? The only one we've heard live so far that I agree weighs heavily on production to sound complete is "Nolita Fairytale". We've heard This Time, The One, Hands On Me, Home, Heroes and Thieves and Fools Like Me live- and to be honest, with the exception of Hands On Me (imo, bc I like the studio version) I think that all the live versions DO sound complete. I especially like the live versions of Fools Like Me. And that's like half of the album. So idk what you are saying in that respect. We haven't even heard the other songs live, how can we judge?
Because that's five out of eleven songs that I think need the extras. What I'm saying is, you can listen to these songs without instruments, and they sound OK, but take a song like Papa- if that had any other instruments it would be tacky and ruin in. Im not saying they're bad without the extras, Im just saying that unlike her previous work, the extra instruments enhance the songs. And yes we can judge! because the style of all her songs on this album is exactly the same! If you play all her stuff, you'll know this. She never used to include the vocal melody in the piano, but now she does. All the new songs stick to a very regimented chord progression and don't stray very much at all. Yes there is some modulation but apart from that.... There is now in all her new stuff, a definite separation between the right hand piano line and the left. Previously, everything moved as one.
And in regards to Linda Perry- listen to Christina Aguilera's song "Beautiful" "The Voice Within" and even "Hurt" they all have exactly the same rhythm and musical style (composition wise) that "The one" and "This Time" have! you know how its like one note and then the bottom two of the triad or whatever. that sort of constant rhythm. I cant explain it but if you compare them you will know what I mean. Vanessa never used to do that in ANY of her songs! The left hand was usually simple and the right was usually a Second melody to what she sang, so her old stuff you could say was polyphonic, and now its just homophonic.. with the main melody of her voice, mostly imitated by the piano in the right hand, with the bass in the left. Don't get me wrong, Fools Like me is an Awesome song and its probably the most different to the other ones, its just what I've noticed as a stylistic change in her music.
Peace everyone :) lol I don't mean to offend!
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I don't think we should be comparing HaT to BnN or Harmonium yet. Whether we want to admit it or not, this is all knee-jerk reaction stuff. When Harmonium came out, I remember a lot of people thinking it wasn't nearly as good as BnN, not it seems to be the favorite of most of the Holics, I think we should let time decide.
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
How do you know all these songs NEED the production to back them up? The only one we've heard live so far that I agree weighs heavily on production to sound complete is "Nolita Fairytale". We've heard This Time, The One, Hands On Me, Home, Heroes and Thieves and Fools Like Me live- and to be honest, with the exception of Hands On Me (imo, bc I like the studio version) I think that all the live versions DO sound complete. I especially like the live versions of Fools Like Me. And that's like half of the album. So idk what you are saying in that respect. We haven't even heard the other songs live, how can we judge?
Because that's five out of eleven songs that I think need the extras. What I'm saying is, you can listen to these songs without instruments, and they sound OK, but take a song like Papa- if that had any other instruments it would be tacky and ruin in. Im not saying they're bad without the extras, Im just saying that unlike her previous work, the extra instruments enhance the songs. And yes we can judge! because the style of all her songs on this album is exactly the same! If you play all her stuff, you'll know this. She never used to include the vocal melody in the piano, but now she does. All the new songs stick to a very regimented chord progression and don't stray very much at all. Yes there is some modulation but apart from that.... There is now in all her new stuff, a definite separation between the right hand piano line and the left. Previously, everything moved as one.
And in regards to Linda Perry- listen to Christina Aguilera's song "Beautiful" "The Voice Within" and even "Hurt" they all have exactly the same rhythm and musical style (composition wise) that "The one" and "This Time" have! you know how its like one note and then the bottom two of the triad or whatever. that sort of constant rhythm. I cant explain it but if you compare them you will know what I mean. Vanessa never used to do that in ANY of her songs! The left hand was usually simple and the right was usually a Second melody to what she sang, so her old stuff you could say was polyphonic, and now its just homophonic.. with the main melody of her voice, mostly imitated by the piano in the right hand, with the bass in the left. Don't get me wrong, Fools Like me is an Awesome song and its probably the most different to the other ones, its just what I've noticed as a stylistic change in her music.
Peace everyone :) lol I don't mean to offend!
I understand you a little bit, but I think that maybe she is just trying new things. I actually like the way she works the melody of the singing into the piano in some of the songs- and usually I don't like that in songs at all. I think Vanessa is clever at using her techniques, and I would say it's more a new stylistic choice than anything else. I don't think she's forsaken her classical roots and I doubt we'll never hear any throwbacks from her in the future. And her singing/playing the melody isn't necessarily a new thing- she did it in Papa, too. . . "Love plastic love, you're a genuine wanna be" =)
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With Be Not Nobody and Harmonium, there was one song on each of the albums, i would not listen to, they are "Prince" and "Pap". With Heroes and Thieves, i like every song and there isn't a song i dont like.
1. Nolita Fairytale 7/10 - nothing special, i like the bridge though.
2. Hands On Me - 9/10 - i was pleasantly surprised with this song, i wasn't a fan of it when she played it live, it sounded boring to me, but i really liked how it turned out.
3. Spring Street 7/10 - it's alright, not a stand out track for me
4. My Best, 9.5/10 - it has a really nice melody, very hard for me to not sing along to this song, second best track for me on the album
5. Come Undone, 9/10 - again, a good sing along song, but i don't like the intro, i like the outro though
6. The One, 8.5/10 - i agree with many people on this board, it would be much better without Stevie's vocals, but it's still a beautifully written song.
7. Heroes and Thieves, 9/10 - i've always loved this song, and i love the cello part, however, i feel it could have been better produced. It could have been more raw, it sounds too happy for me.
8. This Time 7/10 - Hugely disappointed with how this turned out. It was one of my favourite songs when she performed it live. It's too damn slow. It sounds so heavy, it would sound so much better if she sped it up.
9. Fools like me, 8.5/10 - very catchy song, wouldn't have imagined it to turn out like this, but i'm happy with this song
10. Home 9.5/10 - Wow, this song is amazing, i would give this song a 10 if it had more emphasis on strings like in Twilight. The outro is absolutely sublime. Makes me wanna learn the piano.
11. More Than This, 10/10 - The best song on the album by far. Beautiful lyrics and melody and perfectly produced. This song will top my itunes play count very soon. :D This could be my favourite Vanessa song ever.
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Nolita Fairytale - I think it's probably the most accesible song on the album, as its simple and has a catchy melody enhanced by modern production. Not my favourite song on the album, and I usually skip it because I've listened to it so many times. Lyrics are too specific (ie "Stevie knows and I thank her so") which ultimately means that the ambiguity and other interpretations of the song are lost, making it kind of shallow lyrically. 7/10
Hands On Me - Love the 2-3.... and the "alright" at the beginning of the song. At first I thought the song was a bit overproduced, but now I've come to appreciate the diversity between the songs on this album and those on Harmonium. The violin in the second verse could (and in my opinion should) explore its range more as opposed to just playing the same note over and over again. The chorus at the last chorus also make the song sound a bit cheesy. I prefer the live version... 8/10
Spring Street - One of my favourite songs on the album. At first the "nah nah nah nah" annoyed me, but now I realise the importance of it in making both the song catchy to people, but as well as enhancing the whole idea she intrinsically explores through the lyrics. I read the song as being about the cycle of motherhood, and how it continues. Verse 1 daughter is let by mother into the world on their own, Verse 2 daughter meets someones and settles down, Verse 3 the daughter is now saying goodbye to her own daughter....I think the "nah nah nah nah" is kind of about the way in which the same things happen over and over again....if that makes sense? Anyway, I really like the verses of this song. The simple and acoustic sound contrasts from the thicker texture of the chorus. 9/10
My Best - Never release this as a single! It's way too boring in my opinion...whilst the thought and sentiment might be nice, the result is boring, the structure is confusing (which are the verses/choruses??) and the melody sounds like something a three-year old could have made up. I dont mind the "its like you never left" descending ideas (im guessing this is the chorus?) but they are too short to make a lasting impact on a listener. I always skip this song. 6/10
Come Undone - Organ reverb at the beginning is too long. Once would have been enough, no need to repeat the same instrument playing solo for that long unless it changes significantally. I like the piano intro, and the acoustic Michelle Branch feel this song takes. "there are people in this lifetime, we should never meet" - I really like this lyric, and the darker and honest tone the music takes during that part of the song. I like the clapping at the piano outro, it kind of brings it back down to a very raw and intimate level. I love listening to the final piano melodies. 8.5/10
The One - I LOVE the harmonising at the beginning of the song, however the tone the rest of the song follows doesn't fit in with the beginning. I was expecting some kind of mystical and dark song, but it ends up a corny love song. I don't mind Stevie's vocals now, and think that this is probably the best song for her to duet with on the album, but maybe if she sung on "spring street" it would be better as that has the whole mother/daughter old/youth theme running through it....anyone agree? 7/10
Heroes and Thieves - the whole "folk" instrument thing happening makes the song sound like a travelling circus with a gypsy vibe running through it. I prefer the vocals on this song as they are stronger than the live, however some of the instruments ruin it and make the song sound way too upbeat when it's suppose to be extremely emotional and raw. at least thats what i fell in love with the live version for. 7/10
This Time - Linda Perry = death. No wonder Vanessa only put one of her songs on the album. The lyrics are cliche, the piano accompaniment and melody are both repetitive and are based around only a few notes of the simple 1-4-5 chord progression probably employed by Linda Perry. It sounds like a standard pop song, piano intro, verse, chorus, verse 2, middle 8, chorus, outro.....vanessa is so much better than a song like this. The slow tempo of the song makes the song drag on too much, and I find this is another song I skip. Live version = better. 7/10
Fools Like Me - My favourite song on the album. I love the thick sound of the intro which then dies off in the verse, gradually building up agian to the chorus. I love "sand in my shoes" and "ink on a page" pre-chorus parts, they make the song that little bit better. The lyrics in this song are one of the few that feel as if they are coming straight from Vanessa's heart as opposed to Irv Gotti's wallet...If you try and ignore the slight overproduction on the song during the middle 8 you can tell vanessa had heaps of emotion in the "and its BREAKING" part of the song. Too bad its lost in an attempt to appeal to todays music tastes. Still, a great song. My favourite on the album. 9.5/10
Home - the vocals are a little bit overproduced in this song, however during the verses you can hear the emotion in her voice. I like in this song how it starts simple, and gradually the piano/vocals become more expressive and complex. The feel Vanessa creates at the beginning is tepidatious/uncertain and by the end of the song as she realises "I've always known with you I am home" her vocals are a lot more definite...she's made up her mind. I like how the song flows like that, gradually increasing. Followed by an awesome piano outro. Tied for second favourite song on the album. Still, I have a soft spot for the live vesrsion. 9/10
More Than This - I can't express how great this song is. Starts simple, and then builds up a little, then goes back to being simple, then builds up...its just constantly having the listener waiting for the climax of the song and then BAM there comes the "lets live in the glory". The lyrics are poetic and outsanding ["times may be so easily mine"]. I think this is a great ending to a soundtrack....very orchestral, borderline cheesy at parts, but overall a great song. 9/10
Overall I'm impressed with the album. I havn't been able to put it down over the past few days, and everyday I find something new in each song. That's what was missing with Harmonium, as it was very thin texture-wise (often just piano/v). I think V has grown as an artist, and once she has a commercial success I think she will go back to writing the more intimate stuff we are use to and IMO she is more comftorble with. Nevertheless she still feels very comftorble with this album :)
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Spring Street and The One are both produced by Linda Perry, right?
Loved This Time live, but it is just sooooooooooooo incredibly slow on the album version.
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
How do you know all these songs NEED the production to back them up? The only one we've heard live so far that I agree weighs heavily on production to sound complete is "Nolita Fairytale". We've heard This Time, The One, Hands On Me, Home, Heroes and Thieves and Fools Like Me live- and to be honest, with the exception of Hands On Me (imo, bc I like the studio version) I think that all the live versions DO sound complete. I especially like the live versions of Fools Like Me. And that's like half of the album. So idk what you are saying in that respect. We haven't even heard the other songs live, how can we judge?
Because that's five out of eleven songs that I think need the extras. What I'm saying is, you can listen to these songs without instruments, and they sound OK, but take a song like Papa- if that had any other instruments it would be tacky and ruin in. Im not saying they're bad without the extras, Im just saying that unlike her previous work, the extra instruments enhance the songs. And yes we can judge! because the style of all her songs on this album is exactly the same! If you play all her stuff, you'll know this. She never used to include the vocal melody in the piano, but now she does. All the new songs stick to a very regimented chord progression and don't stray very much at all. Yes there is some modulation but apart from that.... There is now in all her new stuff, a definite separation between the right hand piano line and the left. Previously, everything moved as one.
And in regards to Linda Perry- listen to Christina Aguilera's song "Beautiful" "The Voice Within" and even "Hurt" they all have exactly the same rhythm and musical style (composition wise) that "The one" and "This Time" have! you know how its like one note and then the bottom two of the triad or whatever. that sort of constant rhythm. I cant explain it but if you compare them you will know what I mean. Vanessa never used to do that in ANY of her songs! The left hand was usually simple and the right was usually a Second melody to what she sang, so her old stuff you could say was polyphonic, and now its just homophonic.. with the main melody of her voice, mostly imitated by the piano in the right hand, with the bass in the left. Don't get me wrong, Fools Like me is an Awesome song and its probably the most different to the other ones, its just what I've noticed as a stylistic change in her music.
Peace everyone :) lol I don't mean to offend!
I understand you a little bit, but I think that maybe she is just trying new things. I actually like the way she works the melody of the singing into the piano in some of the songs- and usually I don't like that in songs at all. I think Vanessa is clever at using her techniques, and I would say it's more a new stylistic choice than anything else. I don't think she's forsaken her classical roots and I doubt we'll never hear any throwbacks from her in the future. And her singing/playing the melody isn't necessarily a new thing- she did it in Papa, too. . . "Love plastic love, you're a genuine wanna be" =)
I have to agree with Noelle, I think she is just trying new things. V's not gonna be doing the same things all the time. She changed up her style a little bit, and progressing as an artist. If she did all her old songs with the same formula.....well, there would be no difference between them and the newer songs. People change.
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To be honest I'm not sure that this album IS Nessa's best work.. Like don't get angry at me its just my opinion, but the whole reason I loved Nessa in the first place was cause I love Classically based music, and I loved how she was so creative not just with words but rhythms and styles too. All her old stuff, especially the B-sides and many off Harmonium like Papa, were all amazing songs that were so original compared to ANYTHING else out there. She has to be the only performer who can play just her and the piano and still sound complete.
With Heroes and Thieves this isn't the case. It needs the back up vocals, the drums, the orchestral arrangements and the layers. I'm just not sure she has stuck to who she is, or whether she is sacrificing her style for the sake of commercial success? Thats not to say I think that's wrong, its all about different priorities. But If you guys listen to Other Linda Perry songs- many of Christina Aguilera's songs are written by her. You can hear the EXACT same construction techniques. Simple compositional techniques like not straying from a key, sticking to simple triad chords (major or minor) modulation, 1st-5th and 7th chord progressions etc. Very "modern" But NOT avante garde or original. Vanessa's new album is very beautiful in its honesty, and I think it will do well. But only because it's content is aimed for those with a limited musical palette. Notice how it's labelled as "Pop"?
I just feel that creatively, Vanessa showed SO much more variety of styles and ideas in her old stuff! Compare Red Ditty, Papa, A Thousand Miles, Unsung, Prince, Birdie, and Twilight. All very different from each other. But to me, The One, This Time, and Home are all very similar. Don't get me wrong I love her stuff! I just think maybe she gave up on her old stuff because people "didn't like it"
So sad.... :(
Anyway just my piece ^_^ Hopefully no one takes offense to this. 8O
And this isn't a dig! I'm just disagreeing with those who think that this is her best album..
Katherine Ann Marie
How do you know all these songs NEED the production to back them up? The only one we've heard live so far that I agree weighs heavily on production to sound complete is "Nolita Fairytale". We've heard This Time, The One, Hands On Me, Home, Heroes and Thieves and Fools Like Me live- and to be honest, with the exception of Hands On Me (imo, bc I like the studio version) I think that all the live versions DO sound complete. I especially like the live versions of Fools Like Me. And that's like half of the album. So idk what you are saying in that respect. We haven't even heard the other songs live, how can we judge?
Because that's five out of eleven songs that I think need the extras. What I'm saying is, you can listen to these songs without instruments, and they sound OK, but take a song like Papa- if that had any other instruments it would be tacky and ruin in. Im not saying they're bad without the extras, Im just saying that unlike her previous work, the extra instruments enhance the songs. And yes we can judge! because the style of all her songs on this album is exactly the same! If you play all her stuff, you'll know this. She never used to include the vocal melody in the piano, but now she does. All the new songs stick to a very regimented chord progression and don't stray very much at all. Yes there is some modulation but apart from that.... There is now in all her new stuff, a definite separation between the right hand piano line and the left. Previously, everything moved as one.
And in regards to Linda Perry- listen to Christina Aguilera's song "Beautiful" "The Voice Within" and even "Hurt" they all have exactly the same rhythm and musical style (composition wise) that "The one" and "This Time" have! you know how its like one note and then the bottom two of the triad or whatever. that sort of constant rhythm. I cant explain it but if you compare them you will know what I mean. Vanessa never used to do that in ANY of her songs! The left hand was usually simple and the right was usually a Second melody to what she sang, so her old stuff you could say was polyphonic, and now its just homophonic.. with the main melody of her voice, mostly imitated by the piano in the right hand, with the bass in the left. Don't get me wrong, Fools Like me is an Awesome song and its probably the most different to the other ones, its just what I've noticed as a stylistic change in her music.
Peace everyone :) lol I don't mean to offend!
I actually agree with you on many of your points, but I think there's a definite reason for her change in writing style, and as a songwriter myself I can relate and see her approach to these new songs.
Vanessa's stated before that she writes the piano first, and then incorporates a vocal melody and lyrics, and I write the same way. And it's really easy to sing along to some of the parts you end up playing on the instrument, writing for piano is very different from writing for guitar. Guitarists can get away with strumming any sort of chord progression and just play the chords straight, and it'll sound perfectly fine and normal on guitar.
But you can't really write like that for piano, it sounds boring, and just doesn't work as well, so you have to put a hook in the piano part, and weave a melody into it, so that's it's catchy and grabs people, and a lot of the times, it's hard to establish a different melody to sing over the melody you're playing in the accompanyment, it starts to conflict. So, I find myself from time to time singing what I play everynow and then, and it's a very natural instinctual thing to do, and sometimes I won't even realize I'm doing it.
You really won't encounter this problem if you writes lyrics and vocals first, and then write an accompanyment to your vocals and melody, but writers such as Vanessa, don't do this and focus on the music itself first, this process is actually a lot lot harder, because you have to do stuff that fits what you're playing, and as a result it becomes very structured and often times frusterating. Heh.
Vanessa says she's also been focusing on melodies themselves a lot more, with BNN she wrote great piano parts, but her vocals weren't anything particularly strong or catchy, A Thousand Miles is catchy because of the piano hook, not her singing. Now we're starting to see Vanessa evolve and grow as a singer and not just a writer, so this is a very different aspect of herself as an artist that's she exploring. The vocal melodies in H&T are very strong, the piano parts may not always be as strong, but she's not relying on the piano as much to carry her through a song. Which is either a good or bad thing depending on one's view.
I fully agree on This Time though, it's bland uninspired writing, it's stuff we've all heard before, especially from Linda.
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I really love the strings all throughout the album. They sound very wooden, if you'll forgive the term.
What really amazes me about this album is that, except for maybe two moments on the whole album, Vanessa's voice is really something! There are so many times on this album where I know where the melody is going, and I think, oh no, she can't do that, but she nails it! All in control and right on pitch, be it high or low. I guess she has really continued to develop as a singer over the years.
I have to say that this album is so different from what I would've expected a year or two ago, and it was so much more than I was expecting when I put it on. Even the songs I had heard before seem to come alive and give me chills the way they're presented here. I believe this was an expertly produced album, without the so-called "over-production" people around here disdain so much.
Some people will say what they will about the writing quality of the songs on this album, but I honestly believe many of these songs are on the same level as the Beatles, and they were superb songwriters.
I'm listening to it right now for the third time through, and I really like it. It's going to stay on exclusive repeat probably for at least a week if not longer, and it probably won't leave the rotation once for at least six months. It's just so different!
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I realized the other day "Spring Street" sounds like James Blunt's "1973". And some of his other songs. It's probably 'cause of Linda.
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Overall, this is a very happy themed CD. It possesses a realistic happiness, not the superficial kind. Luckily, it also coincides with my current mood ;-) I think this is Vanessa's best work yet. Her sound and lyrics have grown and evolved. You will enjoy this album.
1. Nolita Fairtytale - I really enjoy the full sound of this single. The more I listen to it, the more of a smile it puts on my face. The lyrics aren't great, but the tune is stellar.
2. Hands on Me - Love it! Very intense and happy! Such passionate lyrics:-)
3. Spring Street - The nana na nanaas get in my head.
4. My Best - The organ-like sound gives it an interesting nostalgic vibe.
5. Come Undone - the grainy 30 second organ intro is a bit startling at first, but once this song gets started, it's a complete joy to listen to.
6. The One (w/ Stevie Nicks) - The "you strung me along" and " (I hope) you'll be sorry you left me" song on the album. It will haunt you.
7. Heroes & Thieves - Such a uplifting fairytale of a song. I love it even better than the pre-mastered version. The violins are soooooooo beautiful with her piano.
8. This Time - slower than the live version I've heard her perform. But I enjoy how it let's you digest the notes she's singing and the feelings she's expressing in the song which is about feeling inadequate and overwhelmed.
9. Fool Like Me - SPLENDID! So good. Indescribable ! The lyrics and the music are so vivid.
10. Home - My FAVORITE. I get that "I feel at home in happiness" when I listen to it. I can relate;-)
11. More Than This - Nice closer to the album. Listen to the end of the silence on the track for VC's dog barking.
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just had a chance to listen to the album all the way through today. here's my thoughts.
i mostly agree with what people have been saying... "this time" is completely ruined by the slower tempo. i loved the live version (it's my #10 most listened to songs on iTunes) but the way it's recorded on the album is so boring. i wonder who made the creative decision to have the pace slowed, linda or vanessa.
other than that, however, i really enjoy the album. at first i was a little taken aback at the arrangements for songs i've already heard live, like "hands on me," but as i listen to them more, they grow on me.
the track that really caught my attention was "fools like me." vanessa's writing is getting so much more mature and autobiographical, and this song exemplifies that. and i love how she kind of rocks out at the end... :)
oh and "come undone." she really belts that song out and reveals a grittier, more mature side of her voice that we haven't seen before. i really feel like there's genuine evolution with vanessa on this record. harmonium [which is still my favorite] was more of an extension, at least in terms of her voice and song-writing, not mood or content, of Be Not Nobody. But I feel like with this record there's really a sense of maturity and growth in her artistry.
and like someone said before... there has always been one song on each previous album that i didn't like, for me it was "pretty baby" and "san francisco." but on this album there's not a song i don't like. there's arrangements i don't like, but not songs. :)
HOWEVER, i would have liked to hear at least one song that was solo on the piano. "My Best" comes close, but i wanted to hear something along the lines of "Wanted" or "The Wreckage." But i'm just a sucker for solo piano songs.
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Oh and one last thing, I HATE Stevie in the vocals! Arrrggh she sounds so low and croaky and clashes with Vanessa's voice.
agreed. stevie is a legend, and i have nothing but respect for her, but i could do without her vocals on that song.
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Oh and one last thing, I HATE Stevie in the vocals! Arrrggh she sounds so low and croaky and clashes with Vanessa's voice.
agreed. stevie is a legend, and i have nothing but respect for her, but i could do without her vocals on that song.
I wasn't sure how well that blended the first time I heard it, but it seems to make sense better now, all except for the first part where she first comes in.
Another thing that worried me the first time or two is in "More Than This" where Vanessa goes a capella for a couple lines, and it sounds weird because the key modulates right there on that, but there is little to no instrumental backup, so it sounds like she just busted out of key there for the moment, until the instruments come back up and it becomes clear that there was a modulation, either that or a key change.
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i agree i love her acoustic...but i still think it's better with the orchestra and added instrument in the cd... it sounds really good..it gives the mood to it.. i always have goose bumps when i hear it... and we can always hear her acoustic on live and her demo tape...but i think people would love this.. it has a unique melody and have the positive vibe in it... over all I LOVE IT!!!!!!... every song has a story that everybody could relate with.>>>mostLy >> more than this, home fools like me, come undone, spring street...
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be sure to post your reviews on amazon and bn.com!
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be sure to post your reviews on amazon and bn.com!
yup im gonna post my reviews tomorrow :)
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Nolita Fairytale – The only reason I skip this song (if I do) is because I have listened to it so much. I loved it when I first heard the small clip and I still love it. It is simply beautiful, and I love how, for lack of a better term, frank Vanessa is with the lyrics. At times I guess I wish she had made it a little bit more self-explorative, but I guess the straight forwardness is what makes it. (9.5/10)
Hands On Me – Before hearing the studio version, I read it had a drum beat, and I was so unsure of how it would sound. When I did hear it, I was amazed! I love the drum beat, and this song is wonderful. The “2, 3,” at the start is just the icing on the cake for me! (9.5/10)
Spring Street – It is beautiful. The lyrics explaining how she was let go from her mother, to grow, meet a lover and let her own daughter go is just beautiful. I don’t share the opinion that the “nah nah nah’s,” are annoying to be honest. This is a great song. (9/10)
My Best – It is simple. So simple. In a good way of course. I love the vibe the song gives off. (9/10)
Come Undone – How do I explain this song? Well, the intro just goes on for too long, but other than that, I LOVE IT! It is one of the best songs on the album! Loving the little things V adds in like the claps, and I love the outro. Yup yup. (10/10)
The One – I think Stevie is like a goddess lol, she is great and all, and I don’t mind Stevie’s vocals, but the song wouldn’t of missed them that much if they were gone :$. I fell in love with the song since I first heard it, and I don’t skip it, but it isn’t a favourite as I thought it’d be. (8.5/10)
Heroes & Thieves – LOVE! It is love, lol. I love the violins and everything, and the tone of her voice, it is great. (9.5/10)
This Time – My least favourite track on the album. Sometimes I listen, other times I skip it. I don’t hate it, but I don’t really care for it. This will be the only album I skip (out of dislike) if I skip any. (7/10)
Fools Like Me – I was so shocked when I first heard this! With the whistling and everything, but I do like it. I love the emotion you can hear in V’s voice throughout. Another fantastic song. (9/10)
Home – Home. Home. Home. I loved it when I heard it live. I loved it more on the album!!! The outro is amazing! I mean it sounds so awesome! I love Vanessa singing in a high tone, and she does that here! Definitively deserving a (10/10)
More than this – Perhaps my favourite song on the album. I don’t really have one, it is tied first though! The choir coming in is pure genius, and I love how it climaxes! And of course V singing high = :D. LOL. (10/10!)
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I think the album is solid as a whole. I wish for V's sake that she would have made one pop song (I know Lolita Fairytale was that shot but I don't think it had the impact it should of) to really regain her momentum as an artist but I respect her in the same aspect......... She did keep her focus and really gave me what I wanted to hear as a long time fan. I was really scared that being on THE INC would really ruin her music and did not want a Ja Rule Remix. :lol: The production is pretty good but I have to agree Stevie's Vocals sound like ass on The One. It is really unfortunate that she doesn't really get the respect she deserves because I thought Harmonium was a pretty strong effort and had a few singles that really could of made it. I hope this album doesn't go that way but unfortuantely her material on this album limits her sales for I don't see a huge single coming off this album. Regardless I enjoyed it and am not dissapointed.
Danny :lol:
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If I could rate this album from 1-5, I would definitely give it a 1 [or maybe less].
1. The vocals are bad. Just TERRIBLE. It makes me wanna cry b/c V sound MUCH better than what she did on HAT. The only song she actually sang in tune was Lolita Fairytale. The rest of the album was a total vocal botch-up. I don't know what Vannie is trying to prove by singing dull, boring, flat, monotonous vocals on HAT.
2. The lyrics are even more juvie on HAT than on BNN. V claims to have grown and matured more as an artist and a person, but to me her lyrics don't reflect this claim; instead they're a stark contradiction to her declaration. Moreover, this album is even more uninspired than her previous ones.
3. The sound is even more Indie [and the piano old-sounding] than HARMONIUM.
4. On the set [for HAT] for AOL the vocals were so bad [and the sound so low] that I couldn't get into her performances; I only looked at a few minutes [in all] of the songs she played on set. Only then will my faith be restored when she actually does Sessions@AOL and actually SINGS the songs on HAT.
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Spring Street and The One are both produced by Linda Perry, right?
Loved This Time live, but it is just sooooooooooooo incredibly slow on the album version.
The one is produced by Stephan Jenkins..
This time is lindas crap prod..
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I wanna know who produced it. My guess is Irv..
hands on my is produced by Stephan Jenkins..(Harmonium)
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I've finally gotten to listen to it. My cd hasn't arrived in the mail yet, but I got tired of waiting and being left out.
I love it! Vanessa doesn't disappoint! Here are my initial thoughts.
Nolita Fairytale - I've loved this song since I first heard it and I think it makes an awesome introduction to the album. It really sets the upbeat, reflective tone.
Hands on Me - I was surprised by the production of this one. It's the same song as it was, but different somehow. I like the song; it's good, but I'm not sure how I feel about this final version. I don't particularly like when the strings slide from note to note during the bridge, but at other points in the song it's not as bad. And I'm not sure the constant drum beat suits it.
Spring Street - This song is alright. The "Na na"s are a little dull, but not quite bad. Doesn't really grab me. I think the song has a very unique sound though.
My Best - I like this one a lot! It's very cute and would make for a good single I think.
Come Undone - This song is pretty good. But I really don't understand the opening. It doesn't seem to fit with the rest of the song and I think it would have been more concise without it. I still like it a lot though. "The only one I come undone for is you" is pretty catchy. Another potential single. And the clapping makes it feel cozy and intimate.
The One - This turned out pretty good! This was always one of her sweetest songs. I had heard lots of comments about Stevie Nick's vocals, but I didn't think they were bad or mismatched. It added another layer and something new to the song. And it's cool to have her and V sing together. The piano part at the end of the verses (i.e. "And you think my time's for free / in all the ways you say to me / sweet versions of let's wait and see") isn't as compelling as it used to be but the orchestrations throughout the song kinda make up for it.
Heroes and Thieves - Love it! I loved the acoustic versions we've heard were great, but this takes it even further. I'm very pleased with the production of this one. The strings are beautiful and Vanessa's vocals are really pretty. It's very worthy of titling the album.
This Time - UGH! I've never really cared for this song and it's just as underwhelming now. And too slow as well. I guess it's supposed to be some kind of power ballad now. This song particularly bugs me as I would much rather have had Best Behavior instead of this. However, bland for V is still good.
Fools Like Me - This song is really good. I could totally see this as a single as well.
Home - So pretty! A very sweet, calm song. This one probably showcases her piano skill the most on this album. I love the solo at the end. It comes off very heartfelt.
More Than This - Awesome song! Great end to the album! It's very pretty, powerful, and has inspirational lyrics as far as I can tell. I haven't listened to them that closely yet. The chorus adds a lot too.
I don't really like the synthesized bits of the album, like the electronic instruments and the overlays of V singing w/ herself. But everything else is awesome. While it's easier for me to describe the things I don't like, there were a bunch of things about this album I really love. There are so many great melodies on this album. It was very good to hear a lot of them for the first time. I'm not quite sure how I would compare it to her other albums yet. They're all good and they're all different IMO. I only hope her next one comes out very soon (relatively).
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I'm so glad I did a search on this instead of starting a new topic. I should've done one of these awhile ago. But here's my point of view as of now...
1) Nolita Fairytale
This song was a good choice for the first single however I think another song could've been a better choice for mainstream success. This song is really catchy and the percussion in the beginning is amazing. I just love this song, the vocals, piano, the insight into where V has been all these years. This song is one thing that'll be repeated forever by me...it is catchy. And I use this word for a lot of things, but this song...will always be catchy.
Rating: 9.5/10
2) Hands On Me
This song in my opinion is one of the best she's written. However the song on the album sounds incredibly over produced. The bongos and the little background vocals where she's all, "away." The song would've sounded better if it was just a piano/vocal. However, this song is...I will say it...catchy and will be a great song as a second single.
Rating: 8.5/10
3) Spring Street
Most people say this is the worst song on the album, in my honest opinion, this is one of the greatest songs I've heard Vanessa sing. However it goes on for quite a long time, which I of course enjoy, however it wouldn't do so well as a mainstream track. Maybe if it was shortened. I'm in love with this song and it's very reminiscent of A Beatles' song I've heard before.
Rating: 9/10
4) My Best
At the moment this is the most played song in my library. There's something about this song that's so wrong that it's right. V's definitely giving us her best in this song. The beginning really...I dunno I don't like it but other than that, the song just is awesome. Simply awesome. And there's nothing else I can really use to describe it other than...catchy. :)
Rating: 9.5/10
5) Come Undone
This song is great. Minus this intro and outro this song would be awesomer. Yesh, awesomer. The song itself is very poetic in the way it is written and you really need to listen to this song a lot to decipher the meanings it has. I like it and all, but the whole clapping, intro, and outro should be removed. The vocals also could've used a bit of polishing in the parts where she's belting but it's a good song overall. Great song, great tune.
Rating: 7.5/10
6) The One
Stevie's vocals contribute so much to the song. I love the whole reminiscing on old times and spooky effects the beginning intro vocal thing has. I love the lyrics. Possibly the best she's written other than More Than This. Piano sounds great and so do the vocals.
Rating: 8/10
7) Heroes & Thieves
So catchy and recorded exactly as it should be. That's really all I have to say about it.
Rating: 10/10
8) This Time
The worst track on the album. Not that it's bad, it's just not meeting the standards of all the other songs. This song in my honest opinion, and I'll be brutally honest, this song has the weakest vocals. The vocals seem so struggled and the timing is really off. V should've re-recorded the vocals and sharpened up the timing. It's a bit over-produced and I think this song could've been a whole lot better.
Rating: 6/10 :(
9) Fools Like Me
At first I hated this song but after listening to this song I gathered a big liking for it. It has a great sound and it's produced very well. The arrangement is beautiful and the vocals are so clear and well recorded. This song has major single potential and the little things that Stephen does in this song like the background vocals and whistling...send a shiver down my spine. I love this song. It's awesome.
Rating: 10/10
10) Home
The greatest song ever. This has such a nice melody and has such a nice beat. Again, another song recorded exactly as it should. My favorite next to My Best and if the outro is cutoff it could have major single potential. It flows so nicely with Fools Like Me. Very similar to There She Goes by SixPence None The Richer. I love it.
Rating: 10/10
11) More Than This
Such a fabulous song and has a great message. The lyrics are so poetic and this song...is awesome. Yes, I don't have much to say about More Than This...it just takes my breath away.
Rating: 10/10
That's all.
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I'd give this album a 10/10 the vocals are fantastic and I really find the lyrics to be inspiring, i love V and all of her songs. They are just beautifully written and are even better with her voice and piano playing.
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I'm so glad I did a search on this instead of starting a new topic. I should've done one of these awhile ago. But here's my point of view as of now...
1) Nolita Fairytale
This song was a good choice for the first single however I think another song could've been a better choice for mainstream success. This song is really catchy and the percussion in the beginning is amazing. I just love this song, the vocals, piano, the insight into where V has been all these years. This song is one thing that'll be repeated forever by me...it is catchy. And I use this word for a lot of things, but this song...will always be catchy.
Rating: 9.5/10
2) Hands On Me
This song in my opinion is one of the best she's written. However the song on the album sounds incredibly over produced. The bongos and the little background vocals where she's all, "away." The song would've sounded better if it was just a piano/vocal. However, this song is...I will say it...catchy and will be a great song as a second single.
Rating: 8.5/10
3) Spring Street
Most people say this is the worst song on the album, in my honest opinion, this is one of the greatest songs I've heard Vanessa sing. However it goes on for quite a long time, which I of course enjoy, however it wouldn't do so well as a mainstream track. Maybe if it was shortened. I'm in love with this song and it's very reminiscent of A Beatles' song I've heard before.
Rating: 9/10
4) My Best
At the moment this is the most played song in my library. There's something about this song that's so wrong that it's right. V's definitely giving us her best in this song. The beginning really...I dunno I don't like it but other than that, the song just is awesome. Simply awesome. And there's nothing else I can really use to describe it other than...catchy. :)
Rating: 9.5/10
5) Come Undone
This song is great. Minus this intro and outro this song would be awesomer. Yesh, awesomer. The song itself is very poetic in the way it is written and you really need to listen to this song a lot to decipher the meanings it has. I like it and all, but the whole clapping, intro, and outro should be removed. The vocals also could've used a bit of polishing in the parts where she's belting but it's a good song overall. Great song, great tune.
Rating: 7.5/10
6) The One
Stevie's vocals contribute so much to the song. I love the whole reminiscing on old times and spooky effects the beginning intro vocal thing has. I love the lyrics. Possibly the best she's written other than More Than This. Piano sounds great and so do the vocals.
Rating: 8/10
7) Heroes & Thieves
So catchy and recorded exactly as it should be. That's really all I have to say about it.
Rating: 10/10
8) This Time
The worst track on the album. Not that it's bad, it's just not meeting the standards of all the other songs. This song in my honest opinion, and I'll be brutally honest, this song has the weakest vocals. The vocals seem so struggled and the timing is really off. V should've re-recorded the vocals and sharpened up the timing. It's a bit over-produced and I think this song could've been a whole lot better.
Rating: 6/10 :(
9) Fools Like Me
At first I hated this song but after listening to this song I gathered a big liking for it. It has a great sound and it's produced very well. The arrangement is beautiful and the vocals are so clear and well recorded. This song has major single potential and the little things that Stephen does in this song like the background vocals and whistling...send a shiver down my spine. I love this song. It's awesome.
Rating: 10/10
10) Home
The greatest song ever. This has such a nice melody and has such a nice beat. Again, another song recorded exactly as it should. My favorite next to My Best and if the outro is cutoff it could have major single potential. It flows so nicely with Fools Like Me. Very similar to There She Goes by SixPence None The Richer. I love it.
Rating: 10/10
11) More Than This
Such a fabulous song and has a great message. The lyrics are so poetic and this song...is awesome. Yes, I don't have much to say about More Than This...it just takes my breath away.
Rating: 10/10
That's all.
Great review. It's what most of us think.
the "away" in HOM, is actually her saying "hey". Listen more closely, it's "hey". And it kinda ruins the song a tiny bit. It's really unnescesary, but my love for the song is big, so i don't care.