Search - Tracey Thorn :: Out of the Woods

"Please ma'am, I want some more"

Erika | So. Central PA, USA | 12/12/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Tracy Thorn, the haunting voice of Everything But the Girl, delivers a nice variety of soulful ballad and inspiring dance music on her first solo album. I am more a fan of the group's acoustic offerings myself, but their version of techno (is that still even the term?) is leagues above standard club fare. "Easy" and "Grand Canyon" are standouts in that category. The wonderful climax of the second, in which she encourages a lost soul to claim his true self, urges, "This is the price for you, just look around this room: Is anybody here made out of stone? Down among the heretics, the losers and the saints, you are here among your own--you've come home, you've come home." Given the pained experience that informs most of these songs, her repeats of "You've come home" and "Everybody loves you here" ring as powerful words of welcome from someone who knows what it is to be painfully excluded as "other." Here she shares her experience as one who has come "through the woods" and encourages another to claim that self without apology, leave behind those who don't understand, and claim the motley crew that gets him.

My very favorite song on the album is the poignant and all too brief, "By Picadilly Station I Sat Down and wept." There is not a wasted word in the song, and the unresolved chord on which it ends coincides perfectly with the terrible loss in its words, "the air just seems to shiver and you're never seen again; never seen again." The understated lyrics and delivery are perfect for what could otherwise be a worn-out theme. As we all know, the emotions that come with loss are raw, despite the cliche of their typical expressions in song, and Thorn is a master at evoking them so that they feel as fresh and personal as the lived experience."

Smokin' woods

Dominique J. B. Feneyrou | Paris, France | 03/12/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Music tingles and seduces as Tracey evolves from the clubby, danceable "A-Z", "It's all true" (early Vince Clarke), "Get around..", to electro ballades ("Easy") swinging a heavy bass with her delicate diction. She whispers to you with endearing melancholy (the gorgeous "Piccadilly" and the classic strings in "Hands/ceiling" or sturdy brass in "Nowhere near"). Tracey kindly immerses you in her universe, intriguing, uniquely doubtful yet familiar by its easiness and sympathy. The ensemble will of course remind you of her partnership through Everything/Girl and the core influence of British pop (in its noble years - think early 80's). It's not just that yet: its modern rhythms ("Easy" 's break beats) and edgy lyrics asserts her in these times. Musical poetry(the tingling intro "Here/again") intertwines graciously with heavy beats ("Falling off a log"). The finale picks you up after the discrete melancholy of "Piccadilly": it's an optimistic, contagious clubby tune which will have you spin this baby again...and again to never leave this enchanting forest..."

Sublime

Music Lover | Rhode Island, USA | 03/18/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This one took me several listens over a long period to appreciate. But patience paid off and I find it to be a very well crafted record with just the right amount of mix of brooding and sparkle. Tracy has one of the warmest voices in pop music and she hits her mark on "Out of the Woods". If you are a fan of EBTG, you'll will most likely enjoy this recording - - if you don't upon first listen, give it time."