Sloan's Best Effort
Lee Armstrong | Winterville, NC United States | 10/12/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sloan's first two CDs are each great in their own way. "The Song Inside" seems to bring the elements together with her songwriting, singing & its instrumental prowess. "Too Nice for Too Long" is a breakout bouncer. "I don't want to be your wife; I don't want to be your mother," Sloan declares on "You Are the Feast." "Wavelength" floats by in a stream of consciousness. Sounding like Bonnie Koloc, Sloan rips on "Bridgeburner," "You left town. What a relief." "Falling Backwards" is a soft rumination. "How many millions of pieces can one grown man shatter into?" Sloan asks on the strong title track. Rhythm guitar thumps with David Mansfield's gorgeous violin on "Less Is More." "Freedom" has an original melody & a great drums by Joe Bonadio. If there's a clinker, for me it'd be "Martha." Sloan's singing is so strong; but the lyric is not affecting unless your best friend also has that name. "Steven Leif" suffers from lyrics that are also too specific to connect. Dennis Yeary's Native American flute adds a nice touch to "I Stand Up." The CD rocks out with "Unseen Guide," "Push the door open into the darkness." This CD has the right mix of about two-thirds uptempo tunes, Sloan's strong singing and some great original melodies. Bravo!"
Every song a winner
Lee Armstrong | 07/27/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have also seen Sloan Wainwright live, and out of all three of her recordings (all excellent), I think this one best captures the feeling that you get seeing her perform. The best way that I can describe it is to say that she is like a force of nature! She gives you exactly the same feeling that you get when you witness an amazing storm or some other natural phenomena--thrilling, fun, awe-inspiring, and so beautiful that it's a little bit scary! A real gem."