CD REVIEW
Ms. Early New is from Taiwan and recently came to visit the store, leaving us with her one and only CD. Originally released in 2008, Ms. New wrote all of the songs, plays all of the instruments (mostly samplers & synths & bits of guitar), does all of the singing and produced it herself. I didn’t know quite what to expect since we rarely meet musicians from Taiwan but I was most surprised. First surprise is that Ms. sings in English and has obviously listened to pop music of the past. The opening song is called, “Let it Go”, and it is most melancholy and haunting and rather quaint. Ms. New seems to be singing about not being what folks expect and showing us the secret if we embrace her music, Her soft, sad voice and somber Casio-like keyboard are most charming. Ms. New sings in what sounds like Spanish for parts of “Hey Joe”, which has a lovely samba-like groove at times and ancient-sounding, mellotron-like strings as well. There are a new short instrumental bits which include layers of synths interwoven in a most hypnotic way. All of these pieces are short yet mesmerizing, so a full CD of these would be worthy of our time so… These are bridges into the next vocal songs. Ms. New’s words are often like odd puzzles, about the mysteries of love or trying to figure why life is the way it is. Overall, there is something most enchanting about this subtle gem. The unfussy, quietly psychedelic production recalls Kramer at times. If this sounds like your cup of tea, then grab this disc before Ms. New disappears back to the Far East.
/By Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG (Nov.2017)
CD | Fat Tree Papa Mountain Group | 14.00 |
AVAILABLE at Downtown Music Gallery (Click and Search keyword SOMETHING ABOVE ALL)
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