Review:

on 2012-11-29 Michael_Morrison Said:

There a few elements that make this album work. The most obvious one, the one that stands out and is first noted by the listener, is Nadia Ackermans voice. Her voice has a great tone and she delivers her vocals in a way that shows she has confidence, but also seems to convey a sense of vulnerability. She has a rather mainstream sound, but with a twist. It's hard to come up with a specific reference point in terms of her vocal delivery, but one might say that she falls into the same territory as a Suzanne Vega or a Bjork, but has her own style and sound at the same time. At times Tori Amos seems a valid comparison, too, but with that same disclaimer.

The next selling point on this set is the songwriting. It's not the kind of thing that really hits you over the head, but this is artistic and mature music. It's all reasonably mellow, yet varied enough from song to song to give each piece an individual identity. There's a depth to it that really emerges with repeated spins. Yet, despite all the rather high-ended artistic value, this is somehow accessible. That is a tough balance as a songwriter, creating music that grows and reveals added layers with additional familiarity while still giving people something onto which they can grasp first time through. Songwriters spend years developing that skill and Ackerman seems to grasp it here.

The hardest point of this set is pinning it down to a musical genre. There's an electronic element here, but at the same time the music feels organic. While it's minimalistic in some ways, it's also beautiful and lush. There are moments that call to mind smooth jazz, while other sections feel closer to alternative pop and some sections seem to be more classical in nature. Arrangements develop that build into symphonic progressive rock inspired pop sounds. The truth is, Nadia Ackerman is an artist who defies classification. She is clearly an artist, though, and quite a great one at that.

Michael Morrison
West Lothian, Scotland (UK)
Rating: 9/10