Sia: Lady Croissant
This live album packs a treat for Sia fans
Also In The News
|
Charlton Athletic have been relegated to the Championship after a 2-0 defeat by European hopefuls Tottenham. |  |
Tuesday, 08, May 2007 01:15
Astralwerks, out May 7th.
In a nutshell.
Intimate live chillout, slight caterwauling.
What's it all about?
Recorded live at New York's Bowery Ballroom in April 2006, Lady Croissant sees sometime Zero 7 chanteuse Sia performing fan favourites from their back catalogue, as well as some of her underrated solo material.
There's a treat for the hardcore fans, with exclusive new track Pictures. A bouncy tale of a lingering ex; it's brilliantly illustrative of Sia's style, both soft and poppy, yet undeniably hard-edged and bitter. The eight-song set starts with the languid Don't Bring Me Down, before Zero 7 favourite Destiny excites the crowd.
Lentil transforms from being not a little unsettling to something altogether lovely, while the strings that footnote every track are especially affecting on Numb, creating a superb dynamic, somewhere in the hinterland between stadium and dinner party.
A typically innovative cover of the Pretenders' I Go To Sleep follows, before the highpoint of both the album and Sia's career to date; the stunning Breathe Me.
Who's it by
With a rising profile since the beautiful Breathe Me played out the closing credits of the Six Feet Under finale, Aussie singer Sia Furler has built up a solid following with her melancholic vocals.
The niece of Men At Work frontman Colin Hay, she's dented the UK charts before with the Profokiev-sampling Taken For Granted in 2000, but is best known on these shores for her vocal work with Zero 7. Named by Rolling Stone as one of the '10 Artists To Watch' after her 2004 release, Colour The Small One, this live release precedes new material expected in the autumn.
As an example.
"Be my friend/Hold me, wrap me up/Unfold me/I am small and needy/Warm me up/And breathe me" - Breathe Me
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
Though 'pleasant' really is the most apt word to describe it, it's not the kind of record to seriously dent the charts. Not that this is a big problem; music with so soothing and dreamy a tone belongs in dimly-lit bedrooms and on lazy summer Sundays on the lawn.
What the others say
"It may well be worth checking out for those already under Sia's potent spell; unfortunately, it feels a little too much like a last gasp for air in a market that has unfairly shut her out of the spotlight." - PopMatters.com
So is it any good?
Very much so, but solely within its niche. This is subtle, intelligent music, with a great deal more permanence and introspection than you'd expect or even want from a bestselling artist. Some might have a problem with her vocals though; invariably nasal, commonly divisive, and frequently contorting syllables into submission.
If you can live with the illegibility of some of the lyrics and focus instead on the outstanding tonal changes - from seductive and lush to awe-inspiring vocal acrobatics - it's a rich, rewarding experience. Breathe Me is predictably - almost unavoidably - the standout track, a masterly combination of a band hitting every mark perfectly and a vocalist at the very top of her game.
The half-second of astounded silence of the New York audience before their rapturous applause speaks volumes of Sia's occasionally dazzling power.
7/10
Lewis Bazley