London Folk Magazine and News
Album Review - Katie Dauson: ´Past the Sea´
Past the Sea is the debut studio album from Canadian singer-songwriter Katie Dauson
Musicially the album plays with genres such as folk, country and indie rock. Each track pleasantly bounces along, with backing track precision. They feature a good variety of the appropriate instruments, some played by Katie and some midi generated.
What is unusual, if not unique about this recording, is Katie´s vocal delivery and lyrics.
Katie bears her soul, with brutal honestly. Sharing, without a hint of affectation, the unfiltered contents of her head and heart. Be it a unicorn fantasy land or a heart wrenching expression of loneliness. It is both unusual and refreshing.
Her unique vocal delivery blurs the line between spoken word and singing. The intonation is a little awkward at times and occasionally the melody slips, but this works into the style, especially when combined with her other-worldly lyrics. It creates something kind of cool. It´s a bit like a mix of Lou Reed, Ian Dury and Patti Smith, all trapped in a psychedelic cartoon....perhaps.
Katie has clearly put a huge amount of effort into this release and she should be proud. It is positive step on the journey of discovering her sound.
What the lyrics and vocals do have, is something we love; originality. They are an expression of pure heart, utterly real. It´s a quality I wish all albums contained, but sadly few do. This honest directness is the kind of thing that can build a cult following.
Our favourite track is the opening song Symbols In Stone with its psychedelic instrumental flow and curious metaphors and imagery.
Past The Sea will not be to everyone´s taste, but it’s an interesting album and we appreciate listening to something which does not try to fit into a mould, pushes stylistic boundaries, and retains original artistic integrity.
We look forward to Katie´s future releases.
