awkward i
September 10, 2009
Excelsior Recordings
The fragile and sometimes playful songs easily stick in your head thanks to the excellent songwriting and clever arrangements. “I Really Should Whisper” features a lot of songs with harmonizing instrumentals and vocal harmonies, which gives a richer sound to the songs.
There aren’t a lot of releases in the Netherlands that feature this kind of music. Some bands/artists who use the folk/americana influences a lot (Rosemary’s Sons, Stevie Ann & The Sheer for example) usually tend to take a more mainstream approach and while their music is also of a very high quality, they aren’t able to really stick around in people’s memories for very long. This may just be different for awkward i. Taking a more indie/alternative approach to his songs he really uses the songs to do the talking.
The songs aren’t very likely radio candidates at first, but after several listens you can see how these songs may actually have a good shot to resonate with the radio audience. Take the album opener Rock Stars for example which is quite catchy, or the folky World Well Lost. awkward i fills the whole album with a variety of beautifully arranged singer/songwriter songs that are a must for the true music lovers. If songs like Here All The Time, Angelica Tells Me and I Didn’t Know How To Wear My Hair don’t get you excited, then I am at a loss.
With “I Really Should Whisper”, awkward i released an album that is not only impressive, it is very impressive. With songs that at first listen seem quite simple he is able to touch the listener on a personal level and with his strong skills as songwriter he subtly adds layer upon layer to some of the songs, building it up into very well thought out songs. “I Really Should Whisper” is one of the strongest albums released in 2009, there really can be no doubt about that.