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EDIT INFOKathleen Edwards - Voyageur
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Album Details
- Artist: Kathleen Edwards
- Album: Voyageur
- Label: Universal
- Year of Release: 2012
- ME Rating:
- Reviewed by: MusicCritic on 2012-01-16
RecommendLet’s just say it, get it out in the open, so then we can just realize that it is absolutely irrelevant and move on: Kathleen Edwards is dating Bon Iver front man Justin Vernon. We good? Ok! Moving on…
What is relevant and interesting is Kathleen Edwards' and Justin Vernon’s producing collaboration on Edwards’ stunning fourth album, Voyageur. The Bon Iver ubermensch, aside from being Edwards’ co-producer, also serves as multi-instrumentalist and background singer. Where Vernon’s contribution is most evident, aside from his beautiful backing vocals (especially on 'Change the Sheets'), is a sobering of Edwards’ usual crisp and clean sound.
Voyageur is, instead, full of sweeping melodic moments. These ephemeral glimpses further blur Edwards’ genre lines, pulling her further from her folk roots and landing her nowhere in particular. This indefinable quality is one of the things that makes Edwards, and Voyageur, so hauntingly beautiful.
Rounding out Edwards’ super team is John Roderick (usually of The Long Winters). Roderick co-wrote the immaculate 'A Soft Place to Land' with Edwards and it may very well be one the best songs of this young year. Lyrically simple, musically delicate and deeply touching: “I’m looking for a soft place to land, the forest floor, the palm of your hand…”.
But Voyageur is more than just the sum of its collaborations. Edwards is one of Canada’s strongest and most honest songwriters. In 1993, Peter Bogdonavich directed a gloriously kitsch movie called The Thing Called Love, a country music-musical, and one of the country music sages in the film simply describes what separates a good song from a great one: “Country music does its best to be honest with itself; when it’s sad, it says it’s sad.”
And Voyageur is sad. It is a sprawling journey through heartbreak (Edwards was divorced in 2010) and working goddamn hard to come out the other side feeling stronger and surer. The proof is in the 'Pink Champagne' pudding.
The only real weak moment on this very near perfect album is the lyrically trite and repetitive 'Chameleon/Comedian'. It isn’t a terrible song but it certainly pales in comparison to the rest.
At the end of the day - regardless of who Kathleen Edwards is, or isn’t dating, and is, or isn’t collaborating with - all she wants is to make music. “All I wanted to do,” she sings, “is sing songs.” Honest and true, thankfully.
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on 2012-01-31 tosnob Said:
Kathleen Edwards is a hit or miss proposition for me. When she's gritty and twangy I think she is a powerful artist. When the Ottawa singer attempts her more introspective fare, she comes across as listless and contrived.
Making me approach her forthcoming album Voyageur (out Jan. 17th) with even more trepidation is that it is co-produced by her boyfriend Justin Vernon, whom I always find listless and contrived (not to mention pretentious).
Vernon's influence is felt more prominently on those more sombre tracks. The swirling effects creep in on "Chameleon/Comedian", a bland, sterile number. The orchestrals on "A Soft Place To Land" are out-of-place, while the production on "House Full of Empty Rooms" wastes a strong melody by surrounding it with a cold, lifeless arrangement.
"Pink Champagne" may be the greatest offender of them all. It's faux gravitas is unconvincing as it tries way too hard to come across as a deep, meaningful song. As a result it sounds contrived and cynical.
On a few of occasions, the combination creates some welcome fireworks. The arrangement builds to an intense fervor on the grand "Going To Hell".
The arrangements and effects are most effective though, when they play a subordinate role to Edwards' innate rootsyness (rootsiness?) as on "Change the Sheets", and "Sidecar", rather than acting as a distraction. Boasting a guitar line full of attitude and a keyboard adding texture, "Mint" strikes the perfect balance.
Despite the many criticisms, Voyageur really isn't any less enjoyable than previous Kathleen Edwards albums, since half the songs on those aren't very enjoyable anyway. She remains and artist who is hit or miss.
Rating: 5/10
