reviews
reviews
As fresh and enveloping as morning mist – and as disquietingly opaque – the music of Rosie Brown weaves a wondrous spell. It's centred on the silken murmur of siren songstress Rosie... and the effect is bewitching. She's partnered by producer and co-writer Bernd Rest, whose neat guitar parts (along with Simon Russell's double bass and the general air of trippiness) recall vintage John Martyn. But the post-Norah subtlety (acoustic group at its core), post-Portishead portent (neurotic bluesy dissonance) and post-Zero 7 lounge-chill results in uniquely affecting sounds which unsettle as they seduce.”
Rosie Brown has come up with a spellbinding collection of deliciously poetic and intelligent songs on this, her debut album... The strings on Sweet Girl are ethereal and heavenly. Catch recalls the sublime feel of John Martyn’s early 70s albums, while the arrangement on Crazy is strongly influenced by Joni Mitchell’s The Hissing of Summer Lawns. Yet there’s never any doubt that Brown is entirely her own woman. By the Blue heralds the arrival of a major new talent.”
Like the Mercury nominated Kathryn Williams, Rosie Brown has been dumped in the wispy netherworld between acoustic pop and street-smart folk. But there's an angular, jazzy touch to her tunes that suggests she's much more than the latest cute girl with a guitar. Backed by a live band and occasional loops, this is the kind of music Roni Size might be making if he'd discovered Joni Mitchell instead of drum machines (for the evidence, investigate the crunched groove of Bliss). That's not to say Brown can't do the breathy vocal thing - Sweet Girl is wonderfully understated, a kind of summery Nick Drake - but she obviously feels much more at home with a lopsided rhythm and a twisted hook."
Elemental, sensual, laced with choice saxophone, vibraphone, double-bass and oboe, Clocks and Clouds is often reminiscent of John Martyn circa Bless the Weather, but on the skewed One Horse Tango, Austrian guitarist and arranger Bernd Rest conjures up something more evocative of Les Paul backed by Goldfrapp. Enjoy by candlelight with a good red, or something green and combustible."
Centred around the considerable talents of Brown and Austrian guitarist/producer Bernd Rest, this sparkling record will hearten those who thought that the kind of pastoral arranging skills with which Robert Kirby furnished Nick Drake were history. The flutes on Odessa, bass clarinet on Darn Sing Spin, and soprano sax on album stand-out Catch evince superior musical minds following their hearts… Brown writes distinctive, poetic lyrics, and on Love it Hate it and Song for Dolly there's a sophistication to her phrasing that suggests she's been a secret too long. In a climate where every week sees major labels foist singer-songwriters of questionable quality, this is the real McCoy."
The story: Brighton chanteuse meets Austrian guitarist/ composer/ producer Bernd Rest and they become stars on the London acoustic scene. The vibe: breathier Beth Orton meets more sensual Alison Goldfrapp over lightly funky but expertly played strands of acoustic jazz, folk and blues (shades of Nick Drake)... beautifully murmuring mood music that’s alternately intense and lulling....Very nice indeed, guv.”