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Review: Jack Foley
RED Book is being hailed as the best album from Texas
since White On Blonde.
It certainly marks an improvement on more recent efforts and
further demonstrates Sharleen Spiteri's ability to stretch herself
vocally.
Recent single, Getaway, was an electro-pop breeze into
Georgio Moroder territory, while there are times when Spiteri's
vocals resemble Billie Holliday (and deliberately so).
Not everything is a success and some of the tracks feel a little
over-familiar, drifting into each other if you don't pay much
attention, but on the whole this is a strong return for the band
that places them at the top end of the pop spectrum.
Stylistically, it also marks a progression given that it features
writing and production collaborations with the likes of Brian
Higgins and his acclaimed Xenomania team, Mike Hedges (Manic Street
Preachers) and Dallas Austin (Sugababes).
There's even a vocal collaboration between Sharleen and Paul
Buchanan, of cult group The Blue Nile, which helps to turn Sleep
into one of the album highlights - conjuring memories of Kylie
and Nick Cave in contrasting styles (albeit a little less dark).
Album highlights include the breezy Getaway, the hypnotic
Bad Weather (which veers into Frou Frou/Imogen Heap style
territory), and the edgy Just Hold On, which is melodic
but slightly melancholy besides.
Final song and title track, Red Book, ends the album on a real
high note, showcasing Sharleen's vocals at their most expansive
- breathy, earthy and distinctly Billie Holliday influenced.
When put together with the teasing guitar riffs and electronic
bleeps, it works wonders.
If only there were moments like this, Red Book may really
have been a great album.
As things stand, it's a little patchy with tracks like Get
Down Tonight feeling like an example of Texas on auto-pilo
- a bland dance number that feels like it's stretching a little
too much to reach the chart-topping status of Kylie.
Or Nevermind, a tepid ballad that feels a little too
rooted in the 80s.
Fans, though, will want to embrace Red Book and will
doubtless hail it as a very worthwhile chapter in the ongoing
Texas story.
Album
sampler
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