This is a friend of mine from back at Belmont. She was always ridiculously talented, and it's been exciting to see her put her music really out there, and even book herself a tour up and down the coast. Let's get her music out there and listened to, shall we?
This is a shorter collection of songs, and we start things off with "You Win." I forgot how light her voice could be. The lyrics are just put out there as real words from a girl. The music itself plays behind her with a folk/country sound that is perfect for a warm September day like today. And the background vocals come in support in just the slightest way to give the right amount of support. Interesting end like to the choir - "Dear old Music City, you win." I couldn't tell you if this is a metaphor to a guy, but having been a college kid in Nashville, if this is a legit love song to that city, it absolutely makes sense. | |
| "Time of Day" comes in even more solemnly, so I invite you to take a serious listen to the words throughout this. She's a deeper writer for sure, who puts more words into her songs than we're all probably used to hearing. This is the real meaning of poetry through music. |
Interesting rocking little number up next with "I Came Around." "Everyone changes with a chance." My guess it's about a lost love (btw, reviewing friend's music is tough - you don't want to mess up the interpretation of what they're trying to do). But it's also about learning and growing because of it, though reflecting on what could've been. I don't know, it's just a really well-crafted idea here, and her voice lends so much credence to that. The music picks up for this one, bordering more on rock than the gentle first two tracks did. | |
| "Round and Round" slows things back down. There's a breakup in there. There's the attempt to rekindle, but it's not happening, because as she says "it's just too much to begin again." Admit it, you've all been there. I love when the chorus comes in with this awesome power of emotion. That's something awesome and fulfilling in a song. The music throughout actually is pretty interesting. In the second verse, for instance, the beat is just a little off compared to the melody, but it almost sounds like a march. It's really different. |
You know why we love folk songs, even though we probably would forget it if asked what our favorite genres are? The stories that they tell. "A Runner and a Singer" does just that, and even asks "what if?" It's a great listen to get that mini-movie playing in your head while you figure out why it's effecting you quite so much. | |
| "This Love Won't Break Your Heart" is the song I kept seeing across her Facebook page, so we'll qualify it as a single. It takes an old song with an interesting twist. Annalise remains light in her vocal approach, and it's lovely. There's just as much love and warmth wrapped in that voice and the light use of strings throughout the song as any singer belong out something loud and emotional. |
We end this collection with Annalise's take on a classic, "Stand By Me." Again, her voice remains light and on the air in an easy, good way. It's the perfect mellow way to end out this album, showing off both her gentler nature and power as a singer. | |
- "You Win"
- "Round and Round"
- "This Love Won't Break Your Heart"
- "Stand By Me"
Annalise is something special in music. She has a very different voice and approach to music than almost anything you'll hear on mainstream radio. This is really music you need to concentrate on and delve into whole-heartedly - and trust me, you won't be disappointed when you do.