|
| |
|
|
Sophie B. Hawkins
WILDERNESS
(Trumpet Swan)
|
|
|
|
|
In her 12-year career, Sophie B. Hawkins has released only four albums. And if this new one is any indication, that’s a reflection of how much of herself she puts into each recording. Wilderness is her first release on her newly minted Trumpet Swan label, and thus the first on which she’s had complete artistic control. It finds her in a generally happy frame of mind, dabbling in the upbeat side of dreamy pop and of herself. As a major-label artist, on 1992’s now out-of-print Tongues and Tails and 1999’s Timbre (both Sony), Hawkins framed herself as an angst-ridden singer-songwriter with a taste for gritty musical textures. Here, she plays guitar, cello, drums, and keyboards sparely, letting her sensual, breathy upper register take center stage. "Beautiful Girl" is the disc’s most obviously commercial offering, with slick production and a super catchy chorus. "Meet Me on the Rooftop" takes its rhythmic cues from classic Motown pop; "Open Up Your Eyes" is schmaltzy balladry saved by the bristling emotions Hawkins puts across in the vocals. The disc is rounded out with the soft rock and slight edge of "Angel of Darkness" and the jazzy motifs of "You Make Me High." What holds these disparate musical stylings together is that beautiful voice, and the confessional tenor of the album. (Sophie B. Hawkins opens for the Corrs next Saturday, August 28, at FleetBoston Pavilion, on Northern Avenue in Boston; call 617-931-2000.)
|
