Posts Tagged: you are my sunshine

2008 / 4 stars / dido / reviews — No Comments
8
Dec 08

Safe Trip Home (2008) by Dido

Genre: pop, folk
Rating: ½
“Northern Skies,” “Us 2 Little Gods,” “Never Want to Say It’s Love,” and “It Comes And It Goes.”
myspace, last.fm
Copeland’s You Are My Sunshine, Bird York’s The Velvet Hour

Dido has always had a deft hand for lyrics, but her newest album proves that even she can outdo herself. Safe Trip Home is exactly what it claims to be – a trip to the home, and to the very heart, of Dido.

So much of this album, both lyrically and musically, is personal that it makes the listener wonder if he or she is intruding. This is a welcome change from the more shallow Life for Rent and No Angel. Even though she did fast-paced pop so well, Safe Trip Home is a return to the slower styles of her older songs “Isobel” and “Mary’s in India.” This album might have been three years in the making and releasing, but it was well worth the time and effort.

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2008 / 5 stars / copeland / reviews — 1 Comment
18
Nov 08

You Are My Sunshine (2008) by Copeland

Genre: indie/alt pop
Rating:
“What Do I Know?,” “Chin Up,” “To Be Happy Now,” and “The Grey Man.”
myspace, last.fm
bird york’s The Velvet Hour, keane’s Under The Iron Sea

I never thought I’d live to see the day, but Copeland has just managed to out-Keane Keane with their newest, You Are My Sunshine. Named so by the old beloved song, the album is surprisingly (and intentionally) dark for all its ephemeral sounds. That contrast between lyric and sound, which can be a bit off-putting on the first listen, is what really makes this album stand out in my mind.

While Eat, Sleep, Repeat as simple as its name, the ‘elephant in the room’ was a missing component that would have made the album truly complete – an emotion, a phrase, or even a chord. You Are My Sunshine is essentially Eat, Sleep, Repeat with that component found. But Copeland didn’t stop there; they’ve built upon their sound and added just enough of the energy from In Motion to create something that’s both delicate and mature. The addition of Rae Cassidy Klagstad’s vocals is what really brings this album together (as though it wasn’t coherent enough).

Unfortunately for us, first-time listeners will probably immediately associate Copeland with Keane. But in lyrics, emotional depth, and complexity of sound, Copeland is light years away from Keane. While I could complain about the fact that the lyrics in this album are a bit too alike throughout, it’s still a great step from this really great band.

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