Ingrid Michaelson - Everybody
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Free Music Notes for Everybody
Free Music Review: Awesome!
Hit: 5 Stars
I really love the sound of this CD! Track #1, 2, 11, and 12 are so good. I can't take it out of the player.Free Music Review: Love the new Ingrid Michaelson
Hit: 5 Stars
Great CD, especially 'Everybody'. Can't get that song out of my hear. Don't want to! :)Free Music Review: Ingrid Michaelson Goes In New Directions With "Everybody"
Hit: 4 Stars
After a few days of listening to Everybody on continuous rotation, I have come to really enjoy this release as a whole. Most of these songs will end up on one playlist or another of mine, and that's a testament to the range and variety of this album. While this album may not be best appreciated played in one sitting from start to finish, it includes a lot of songs that sound great when played individually or mixed in with other artists.
In certain ways, this album is a natural extension of Ingrid Michaelson's previous albums. Tracks like "Everybody" and "Men Of Snow" have the deceptively simple structure of some of her most successful songs. "So Long" has lovely vocals with simple and mellow guitar accompaniment. These kind of tracks are what many would expect an IM album to sound like.
Yet tracks like "Soldier" and "Mountain And The Sea" remind me more of the rock ballads like "Possession" from Sara McLaughlin's Fumbling Towards Ecstasy. On those songs, the harmonies and driving instrumentation add an energy that I really like. And "Locked Up" continues that trend with a piano rock song that blends the hand clapping and simple structures of other songs.
Songs like "Sort Of" seem to have more in common with the longing and softness of records like Tracey Chapman's New Beginning. The ground that she covers here gives you a sense of Ingrid Michaelson's versatility as a song-writer and performer.
I can appreciate the depth of more carefully written lyrics from prior albums, but I also respect that Ingrid is trying to expand her range as an artist. Some of these simpler songs may be more accessible and, thus, may win her new fans. There is always the risk that they may alienate long standing fans, but there is enough of her signature sound here.
"Once was Love" is a good example of how this album is both a step forward and a step back from previous ones. On the one hand, we have a rich instrumentation that includes violins and layers of percussion. On the other, we have repetitious lyrics that recycle certain concepts. There is validity to the criticism that certain words, like that four letter word "love," are over-used on these songs.
And yet, I give her a pass on that for one reason. When I listen to each song individually, most of them are still very good on their own. As I said, they may not be well designed for playing in the same playlist, but most of them will end up in one playlist or another. I'm not crazy about the repetition on songs like "Once Was Love" and "Everybody." But judging by the fact that the title track is already successful as a single, it's clear that most people disagree with me on that.
My personal favorites are "Soldier," "Sort Of," "Mountain And The Sea" and "Locked Up," though all of the other tracks add something. I think I like these tracks most because they show me a different side of Ingrid Michaelson that I didn't get to see as much of in prior albums.
CONCLUSION
This is an interesting new direction for Ingrid. The pop sensibility of this album is significantly increased, which may alienate some and appeal to others. But those willing to give this album a chance are likely to find more than a few songs that they like.
Enjoy.
NOTE: The first disk I received had a problem playing the last track, #12, "Maybe." I am curious if others had this experience with the disk or if mine was an isolated case.
Free Music Review: Ingrid Michaelson Takes A Step Toward Mainstream
Hit: 4 Stars
So far 2009 has seen a number of "sophomore" releases from artists, and Everybody from Ingrid Michaelson is one of them (I'm not counting the EP Be OK but limiting to major releases). Fans looking for Girls and Boys Part II will not find what they are looking for in Everybody. However deviating from Girls and Boys is not necessarily a bad thing. I found Everybody to be a much more focused work. It is also much more mainstream; however, some will not look on this favorably. You could almost make
Instrumentally, Everybody has more depth and variety. I loved the violin and cello on "Soldier" and "Incredible Love". Michaelson also introduces Ukulele on songs such as "Everybody" and "Mountain And The Sea". It has a feel similar to Israel Kamakawiwo`Ole's rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" from 50 First Dates. I also really enjoyed the subtly stated use of trumpet on "So Long". Perhaps as a way of at least loosely connecting with her past work, "Everybody" and "Mountain And The Sea" also feature the folksy hand clapping that Michaelson used on Girls and Boys.
Vocally, Everybody features more of Michaelson's lower register. This comes right out of the gate on "Soldier", and it continues on other tracks such as "Sort Of", "Maybe", and "Incredible Love". That is not to say that Michaelson has switched exclusively to a dusky alto. Songs such as "Are We There Yet", "Men Of Snow", and "The Chain" have plenty of her upper register and falsetto. "The Chain" is the studio version of a song that we first heard on Be OK. It has the same vocal round at the end as the live version did, and it just doesn't seem to fit with the rest of Everybody. As a final note, Everybody has good vocal harmony. I really liked the way this came through on the chorus of "Mountain And The Sea" and "Maybe".
Lyrically, Michaelson plays things much more straight up than she did on Girls and Boys. Love and relationships dominate Everybody as seen on "Soldier" - "And so it goes. The soldier knows./The battle with the heart isn't easily won." and "Maybe" - "Maybe in the future/you're gonna come back/you're gonna come back around". It is obvious from the title alone on "Incredible Love" and "Once Was Love". The one song that would fit with the more unique style of Girls and Boys is "Men Of Snow" where Michaelson tells of building a snowman that she tells her troubles to only to find him melted the next day. Even this still seems friendlier to a wider audience than most of Girls and Boys.
All in all, Everybody is a major step forward for Ingrid Michaelson. While I enjoyed Girls and Boys, it almost seems esoteric compared to Everybody. Michaelson has created a sound that while featuring greater breadth in vocal range and instrumentation is at the same time more focused. Fans of KT Tunstall, Sonya Kitchell, and A Fine Frenzy should give this a try.
Download this: Maybe
Free Music Review: touching, charming and with just enough depth...
Hit: 4 Stars
I am by no means a deconstructionist reviewer. I like books with some character development, a plot that is involving and moves along at a reasonable pace and some humor to occasionally lighten things up; if and when necessary. I sort of feel the same way about music. I like depth, breadth and variety in what I listen to. There are a lot of really dark songs and albums out there wrapped up in beautiful melodies, driving beats and/or with very distinct harmonies that make the messages blur from time to time... And I'm good with that. I look at an album/cd as an experience of sorts. Is it something that works when I'm looking for that rowdy, irreverent, ironic Tom Petty kind of thing (which is almost ALWAYS), is it an "in-between" kind of thing that should have both upbeat and mellow moments like Amos Lee's first cd of the same name? Can you see where I'm trying to go with all this?...... Because "Everybody" gets it done. It fits a Saturday afternoon picnic with friends in the back yard that becomes a slightly tipsy party by the time you pull the steaks off the grill and you're wondering if you should have just one more beer with dinner.
I like the cd. I like listening to all of it, beginning to end. I don't feel the need to skip over some songs to get to others and I don't find it a niche musical experience that is only enjoyable under very defined (and limited) sets of circumstances. Is is brilliant, exquisite or highly exceptional? Perhaps not. But she hasn't been alive as long as Sting has, had the multitude of life-altering events as say Cheryl Crow or Melissa Etheridge who have also been alive much longer than Ingrid has. But EVERYBODY is thoughtful, enjoyable and a clear demonstration that this is a girl who has A LOT TO OFFER! Give it a listen and see if you don't agree.