Archive for the ‘Rachael Yamagata’ Category
Rachael Yamagata – Elephants…Teeth Sinking Into Heart
This is probably my first review of a relatively mainstream artist, considering this album’s gotten reviews from popular professional mags such as Rolling Stone, Allmusic, and Entertainment Weekly (I don’t really feel like providing the links). I would’ve normally deterred from Rachael Yamagata‘s music altogether, being that I’m pretty ignorant about mainstream music, but it’s a pretty good album, so I feel comfortable joining the masses with this one. If you watch a lot of popular TV shows and movies, you might’ve heard of Rachael Yamagata through songs like “Be Be Your Love” or “Reason Why.” Or you might’ve heard her through contributions to Ryan Adams, Jason Mraz, and Bright Eyes. She’s making her way through the industry quickly, and there’s no doubt that she’ll be stopping any time soon.
Rachael Yamagata could be considered adult contemporary, drawing in influences from folk, pop rock, blues, and Americana (I guess that encompasses all the former genres I’ve listed) with a more modern twist. Elephants…Teeth Sinking Into Heart was set to be released in 2007 but ended up being released in 2008 due to label changes. Perhaps a long wait for fans but probably worth it, anyhow. It’s a two-disc set; the first with 9 tracks, and the second with 5. Admittedly I enjoyed the first disc more than the second; the second sounds more like an attempt to please the masses, with cliched song structures and a bad-ass attitude. It’s a complete turn-around from the first disc (and her first album, Happenstance (2004)), which would probably be considered more mopey-sounding. I commend the attempt to separate the album into two different themes (the second seems to have a less naive, grown-up approach to it), but I don’t feel like it fits. And it doesn’t sound that good.
The album starts off with “Elephants,” a pretty sweet sounding piano ballad. She sings with such sweetness, with a tone of sad resentment as exemplified with her lyrics. She writes with a sullen, dark poise, reminding me of pre-sober Cat Power. She sings with heartfelt feeling which seems to encompass a deep sensitivity to music, something I’ve always admired in many songwriters. But another awesome thing about her voice is its versatility. I found it a bit surprising that she could sing with such hollowness in “Elephants,” with a growl in “Faster,” and with such soul in “Sunday Afternoon.” It really showcases how brilliant her vocal talents are.
This album is pretty sweet; while mainly conveying feelings of heartbreak and love (who knew you could write about the same heartache in 15 different ways?), musically it is quite enjoyable to the senses. Goddamn half-Japanese girls…do it to me every time.
Hmm…it’s likely we’ll get a notice to take off the MP3s, but for now:
Rachael Yamagata – Elephants
Rachael Yamagata – Don’t
