Search - Maria Taylor :: 11:11

11:11 is 5 by 5

Frank Gualtier | Colorado, USA | 04/11/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Maria Taylor, one half of the duo 'Azure Ray', has produced a welcome and charming creation in 11:11.



With the exception of two songs, 'Nature Song' and 'One for the Shareholder', all songs are the product of Maria's mind and heart. Nobody can tell you what to like but objectively most of us can spot bad or problemed songs. Hey most of us, save your eyes and ears, you have entered a spot free zone. There exists nothing but the highest quality soaked through and through this collection proving that Maria is nothing short of an amazing songsmith.



As for her voice I've seen it called 'soulful'. I think that's right on the money. Listen to 'hitched', for example, and challenge yourself not to be overcome a bit by the surge of yearning that travels the length of your spine. The song that will probably reach out to the most people on this CD is 'Song Beneath the Song'. It is, at the time of this writing, still available for viewing here:



http://www.apple.com/quicktime/guide/hd/



We often forget how much soul can be carried by the voice of a child. The spirit of innocence, it's loss, and the purity of emotion in any of it's hues. Maria's voice is somehow that and more. She is the whisper of charm so fragile one might fear to touch it and a moment later that same sound weaves it's way into a current so strong the listener might turn and wonder if it is not they who are the fragile one. And, as most know, she never has to scream, nor does she, to make any of it work.



Production quality, recording, playing, mixing and mastering, are exceptional. Even in the early days of 'Azure Ray' the mixing was top notch The thread of that quality has just gotten stronger and trascends into this solo project.



Any CD that contains at least a couple of songs worth it's full merit is worthy of praise. Here you will find far more. Maria Taylor's 11:11 is 5 by 5 and five star worthy.



I am highly entertained Maria! Bravo!



-Frank Gualtier

"

Oh Maria...

John A. Busch | Davenport, IA | 05/26/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Do you guys remember when At the Drive-in split? And then there was Sparta and the Mars Volta? And even if you weren't in on the drama, it was pretty clear what happened.



The sparta dude was having a lot of fun in at the drive-in.



The mars volta dudes wanted to push things forward.



Then Sparta is a little bit of popular, but MarsVolta is the one that gets all the respect. Because, bascially, Sparta is just At The Drive-in without the 'fros and the creative spark.



That's kind of how this thing was...but:



Azure Ray's hiatus is totally amicable.



Maria Taylor is just...so...like-able.



And the direction she takes is just so...touching.



In an interview, she says something along the lines of "...my entire life has always been based on me and somebody else..." and here she is, on this CD, same woman, same life...but alone. And it's about how she's both inspired and scared by this. And she should be. It's a big step, especially for the quintessential embodiment of her former bands sound-- a breathy vulnerable sounding voice, accompanied by spare instrumentation that provides little cover for deeply personal and confessional lyrics.



It's mean to compare Orenda and Maria competitively, but it's hard not to do. Throughout Azure Ray's career, one could listen closely and pick out their subtle differences and respective talents. Orenda's domain was her command over more complex lyric structures and a flair for darker,more innovative instrumentation. And Maria always wrote the more conventional and simpler songs, but with an undeniable, but undefinable allure that stemmed from, but transcended mere catchiness.



She keeps it up with this release, but she's added a backup band and some nice studio touches that a bigger budget and good friends gets you. But what makes this album powerful is that its not about "look how far our production has come in the past 10 years," the songs are still written from the same heart that her Azure Ray songs came from.



There are minor downfalls that she has carried over from her past career as well, however. I find myself cringing at her occasional rhyming dictionary couplets ("there was a time when my heart was aching, yes there was the day i swore it was breaking") and in general, she is not as confident a guitarist as Orenda. But because of the kind of person Maria Taylor portrays herself, in interviews and lyrics, these shortcomings only seem to add to the character she has made herself into. Here she is: she is going to tell you about something the best way she knows how, and she is going to tell you about it how it comes to her. Yes, there is something trite about an achey, breaky heart, but if that's what you have, why pretend you don't?



And that's what makes all these songs so touching. The anxiety described through seemingly silly fears in the aptly named "Xanax"; the ruminations on marriage "Hitched" (more touching still, when one considers Orenda Fink has reached a turning point in her life, musically and socially, as she marries long time friend Todd Baechle while Maria continues plugging away at the same old song); and the absolutely heartbreaking line "I will wait for you...but please come soon," told in that spare, almost-unpoetic-but-ultimately-more moving-than-any-poetry-can-be, style that Maria is the best at; make this CD very familiar, yet very worthwhile.



This CD is a natural progression from what Maria Taylor was doing in Azure Ray, and for that it's really, really great. Orenda wins the ambition award, but Maria Taylor delivers on a solid memorable album."

Surprise surprise

Tim | Baltimore, MD, USA | 01/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...it's just as good as azure ray.



she writes songs with fantastic lyrics and beautiful melodies that pull emotions out of me that i forgot i had. 'leap year' is beautiful nostalgia, 'birmingham 1982' brims with childlike innocence, there's the sweeping chords of 'nature song' and the bittersweet reminiscence in 'two of those two.' she picks it up a notch with 'one for the shareholder' and reminds us all to let go with the modern poignancy of 'xanax'. i looooove it. it's one of those rare albums i always listen to from start to finish. good job maria!"