Search - Sophie B Hawkins :: Whaler

As I lay me down

Erica Anderson | Minneapolis, MN | 05/11/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have not listened to "Whaler" in years but I recently popped this cd into the stereo because I always come back to listen to the gorgeous ballad "As I Lay Me Down" so I felt compelled to listen to the cd in its entirety. "Whaler" is a gorgeous pop album which I always thought was highly overlooked back in 1998, let alone Sophie B. Hawkins as a vocalist. The album is filled with lush pop melodies. Very soothing and cathartic to listen to on a cold, rainy night, especially when the songs are sung by Sophie who has such a lovely ethereal voice. I almost forgot how much I enjoyed listening to mid-tempo track "Right Beside You". The same with "Don't Don't Tell Me No". Of course my two favorite songs on the cd has to be the singles "As I Lay Me Down" and "Only Love (The Ballad of Sleeping Beauty)". "As I Lay Me Down" still sends chills down my spine even all these years when I have gone through various musical phases. That is one of the best ballads I have ever heard and Sophie pulls it off without making the song sound cheesy ala Celine Dion. Obviously I am not the only person who loves this song to pieces. "As I Lay Me Down" have been used countlessly in films and television series. I wished that the follow up single "Only Love" received as much as airplay as "As I Lay Me Down". "Only Love" is another personal favorite song. I liked the album mix over the radio mix I heard when it was released as a single, same with "As I Lay Me Down". The radio mixes for those two songs totally ruined the essence of the songs. I also adore the hopelessly romantic "Let Me Love You Up". The title sounds silly but the melodies are simply gorgeous. Sophie certainly had a knack for pop melodies and she certainly showcased her abilities on "Whaler". Kinda sad to see her career in limbo."

Intriguing

T. Jones-Yelvington | Chicago | 12/04/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Sophie B. Hawkins is an odd sort of artist, one who defies every imaginable convention and manages to stand in a category all her own. Just what this category is remains up for grabs.I first purchased this album about a year ago off a sale rack at -- of all places -- a Rite Aid drug store. I was familiar w/ Sophie's "As I Lay me Down," a popular radio single from my middle school years, as well as "Lose Your Way" from the Dawson's Creek soundtrack and Sophie's recent "Timbre." I expected more works along the lines of these two songs -- sweet, mildly melancholic singer-songwriter love ballads. I was shocked to insert the album and embark upon the fast-paced, almost 80's-esque synthesizer oddyssey that is "Right Beside You." What was going on? Women from my female singer-songwriter shelf weren't supposed to sound like women from my 80's pop diva shelf. Who was this strange creature? Too frightened to hear more, I stuck Sophie at the bottom of my shelf and virtually forgot she existed.That is, until a month or so ago, when I happened to randomly give this album another shot. Now more prepared for what I was getting myself into, I found myself falling into Sophie's intoxicating musical landscape.Most of the artists I hold most dear have a sound that one might refer to as intimate, and on a surface level, Sophie is anything but. "Whaler" is an apt description of many of Sophie's vocals. She literally whales, backed by heavy production, with everything from synthesizers, drums and pounding pianos to dolphin and monkey calls. And though Sophie's songwriting dwells in a territory one might initially refer to as poppish, she very quickly and effectively subverts the pop sound, often changing melodies many times over the course of a song and combining lyrics and music in highly non-traditional ways. This may be Sophie's greatest strength -- she hooks, then shocks and confounds you.It is hard to find a comparison for Sophie -- she is that unique. However, her atmospheric experimentation reminds me a bit of Kate Bush, as well as selected works by Tori Amos, Heather Nova, Jane Siberry and Paula Cole.Sophie is a surprising and enigmatic artist, one who is at once accesible and inaccessible. As in my case, the vocal and musical histrionics of "Whaler" may take some getting used to. But once you do, I guarantee you'll find yourself listening to this album until the piano intro to "Don't Don't Tell me No" is stuck on constant replay in your head, and those damned Jungle monkeys are haunting you in your sleep...
TIM J-Y"

A whale of an album for romantics

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 11/11/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Sophie Ballantine Hawkins made quite a stylish volte-face with her sophomore effort, Whaler. Gone were the hauntingly ethereal synths that marked Tongues and Tails. Instead, one got bits of dance pop and stylish ballads which effectively served for some quality vocal delivery from SBH. And the songs here are more romantic and optimistic compared to T&T, with some soaring vocals put to good use over some somewhat exotic albeit indulgent synths I've never seen since Heart's Ron Nevison-produced albums!



The highest charting single was the sweet lullaby-like ballad "As I Lay Me Down," peaking at #6, and spending six long weeks atop the Adult Contemporary Charts. Airy synths accompany the keyboards and guitars to create a more radio-friendly sound. Having said that, it's a mystery why other singleworthy tracks flopped.



Possible answer: "It's not a matter it's a matter of taste," raps Sophie in the bridge's monologue of the opening track, "Right Beside You" opening with exotic space-age synths and keyboard fills, and techno beat that would've been right at home on a Human League or Pet Shop Boys album, with some frantic accompaniment by Sophie. #54 is way too low for a song that deserved Top 5 status.



The life-affirming "The Ballad of Sleeping Beauty," also known as "Only Love," made it to #49, a number of mid-paced energy, is another 80's-like synth number with Sophie's distinctive stylings, rapid-fire subconscious lyrics in the prechorus, and catchy choruses: "only love can purify, only love can conquer fear, only love can make a miracle of life." The rapid-fire material does include all the cycles one goes through-"I want the loss I want the pain I want to start my life again", and the many personas embodied with a woman: "I am the child I am the whore I am the wild woman at your door" In looking at the original lyrics, I see she substituted "you effed with my head, you effed with the dead, now I'm gonna eff with you" with "you messed etc." Curious.



But it was the sheer danceability of "Don't Don't Tell Me No." A truly romantic number, tender at times, oozing of that naïve spring love. It's that rapid-fire layered echoing vocals going "never let it go" near the end that really get me, but also some innuendo: "this is our world awaiting for the sweetest penetrating love we have found. Why can't we splatter it around and around?" Whoa! Another on the same line is "Let Me Love You Up" where she incorporates some breathy yet playful French lyrics.



A primeval jungle-like theme, with horn flourishes and some funk is prominent in "Swing From Limb To Limb" of going back to nature in terms of love, doing it like the monkeys in the jungle. The tearfully romantic ballad "True Romance" truly highlights Hawkins' vocals, consisting of airy synths, keyboards without any drum machines. Another highlight of this album. "Sometimes I See" sports a loungy jazz sound.



The heaviest song in terms of theme is "I Need Nothing Else," where the rough and tumble and yet the softer side of love is explored, and how the protagonist accepts both-"in you I see the brightest star that burns inside me and breaks my heart." The yin to the yang, in other words.



This was on heavy play at the music store where I worked, and its highlights really grew on me. I wonder if people who expected Tongues and Tails Part II-The Next Day were incensed and decided to use this CD as a coaster or Frisbee. Not me, as I'm still touched by this album to this day, which is for tried and true romantics."