The Courtesy Fall - Dawn Kinnard Album Review

Dawn Kinnard

Album Review

The Buffseeds appeared in 2003, released 'The Picture Show', and split a year later; they sang euphoric rock-pop and the spirit of their sparkling guitars and swirling keys lives on through the opener on this album, 'All In Your Head'. No bad thing, but however good the original a copy is never exciting...

...I thought, until the charged blues-rock riff of 'Devil's Flame' proved me spectacularly wrong. If Jack White, Macy Grey, and Cake were locked in a room and told to write a song to grab the attention of dismissive reviewers, they might be allowed out after posting these scrawled lyrics under the door;

You can't cop out, and you can't crawl away. You can't tell God you have a mental illness and you're exempt for the day.

The rest of the album continues to excite. When 'Fortune Teller' is pitched into the pond, the ripples that spread out remind you of Billie Holiday, and the featured blues-orchestra underpins both the song and the comparison. Jason Mraz's bass notes compliment the shimmering soundscape of duet 'Clear the Way', before a few forgettable tracks threaten to disappoint.

'Lean to the Glass' nudged me back awake with a bare-bones refrain that refreshes in its simplicity, and shows that Dawn can turn her voice to sweetness as well as soul. As if sensing the need to win back the audience, 'Pennsylvania' starts the foot tapping with an alternating bass that pulses away like a cheerful steam-train heading for LastSongVille. It arrived at 'White Walls' which turns out to be a suburb of low-tempo musings that drifts in and out of consciousness. Each change of pace is announced by ascending piano chords until the track is unceremoniously laced with delirious electronic arpeggios that scream 'outro'. Indeed, it's the end of the album.

Is it any good? The stand-out tracks, 'Devil's Flame' and 'Fortune Teller' really do stand-out, and while the album seems to lose its way with a surplus of low-key musings as a whole it is a thing of great appeal. I enjoyed it, I think you might too.

James Thomson