Alison Sudol, the singer songwriter of A Fine Frenzy with a fluttering voice and red hair, arose with 2007’s One Cell in the Sea. She carried with her a collection of pop songs soaked in pathos and fairytale and nature themes. This follow-up, Bomb in a Birdcage, aims to reveal an edgier and more versatile side of her, but it sputters because it leaves fundamental flaws in her music untouched.
Alison’s airy pop combines a 70s folk singer-songwriter style with bits of Coldplay and Tori Amos. It frequently drapes you in warmth, her music floating in the upper regions of your skull. On this album, she upgrades it with a faster feel and stronger beat. It comes off sounding more pop-rock and folk. “World Without” resembles Coldplay more than anything off her first record. However, songs like the mellow closer “Beacon” sound like her older works.
Unfortunately, her music still doesn’t blend well with her vocals. Alison’s singing is chirpy and breathy, but not distinctive enough to nest in your head. Her band doesn’t contribute sufficient drive or hooks to compensate, resulting in unmemorable songs. The lead single, “Blow Away,” is the only one that doesn’t automatically fade afterward. I like the joyous way she sings the track’s title, and the pulsing acoustic guitar line.
Most of the time, her band chokes listeners with too much atmosphere. Too many instruments are layered together, and it sounds jumbled. For instance, “What I Wouldn’t Do” is a simple country song that Alison could play on a street corner alone with a guitar, but it’s cluttered with an entire string section, whistles, hand-claps, piano, bass, and drums.
I’m not sure why Alison’s drummer and bassist play so loud. It doesn’t make her material rock, it makes it noisy. You can hardly hear her singing or the rest of the band with such complex tacky beats. Worse, they recycle the same rhythm which makes it even harder to tell songs apart.
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