Michelle Anthony: Stand Fall Repeat - Page 2

Anthony's lyrics are interesting and literate throughout, and sometimes poetic, as in "Today," the CD's best ballad:

So change your face, cut your nails, smooth out all your fraying ends

Start your car and shade your eyes, swallow all your little pills

Hold your breath as you drive past the old life that has died

The only real downer is the ballad "Closer" which doesn't go anywhere and does nothing for me - when she sang it live, my wife and I found ourselves playing with the straws in our drinks and wondering when the song would be over. (Someone likes it, though - it's being used in a movie.)

Unfortunately the CD doesn't quite do justice to Anthony's voice, and I would never have known that if I hadn't seen her live. That's not to say it doesn't show she's a good singer: in fact, when I first listened to the disc I thought, Thank goodness, a female singer-songwriter who isn't afraid to actually sing!

But she's stronger live, and I don't think it's the fault of the recording per se, since the voice is clear and up front in the mix. Maybe Anthony and her team were a little too distracted by the authentic sounds of their guitars and keyboards, which do sound great. Or maybe she was trying a little too hard to be "controlled" in the studio ("Ellouise" excepted). It's hard to say. In any case, the voice is more impressive live.

Another issue is that the country vibe was totally absent in the live performance. In itself, that's neither a bad nor a good thing. But the CD might give industry people the wrong idea.

Still, a good song is a good song. Anthony has some, and if she keeps at it she can probably write many more. And her voice alone, especially if she tours enough (she has upcoming dates in Austin and in the Midwest), ought to get her noticed.

All in all this is a very promising debut.

Article Author: Jon Sobel

Jon Sobel is Blogcritics' Culture and Theater Editor. In addition to reviewing NYC theater, he writes a semi-regular round-up of independent music releases. By day he is a computer professional and a freelance writer and editor, and at night he's a …

Visit Jon Sobel's author page — Jon Sobel's Blog