Certain albums have this undescribable, freakish way of reminding me of stages in my life. Not only reminding me, but practically teleporting my mind back to that time, so much that I almost want to put back on those old clothes (except I'm perfectly fine to do without the braces I had then, thanks) and go back to tenth grade. A lot of people have albums that can do that for them. So, this is definitely my 'flashback CD'...

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you *drumroll* The Spirit Room. You know, this album depresses me. It really, really depresses me. This is not a feel-good album. I think I spent the entire summer of 2002 with this album on repeat. Glorious. So, uh, nearly every song on this album makes me want to throw a crying fit. Is that a bad thing? Of course not! Painstakingly emotional...catchy...not to mention Michelle Branch is quite talented. Yeah, I'm quite fond of The Spirit Room. I don't know why I've been neglecting it lately. Shame on me.

First things first: I hate the first single and album opener "Everywhere". Call it catchy if you wish, but honestly, I'd be fine to go without hearing that sing-songy chorus ever again. It's just so jumpy-sounding, and has too cheerful of a tone for an actual non-cheerful subject. I never liked it; in fact, it made my first impression of Michelle Branch's music a pretty horrible one. It's not that I thought that she had no talent, but the song is downright annoying. Possibly the only true skippable on the album, it's redundant and lame. Okay, so the other lame moments on the album are fine -- but this one simply is not.

"You Get Me", however, is a shining star in its own right. It's a dainty, fluffy little tune in which Branch shows gratitude toward that special person who always understands her. Her voice is rather velvety and pleasant here, and it's an overall amazing tune that flows excellently. "All You Wanted" was what caught my attention; after hearing that song, I knew I had to get this album immediately. No hesitation. Truth be told, it did appeal to me even tons more when I was 14, but what gives? I still call it an amazing song. The structure is awesome, the melodies are great, and of course the lyrics are outstanding. "All you wanted was somebody who cares," Branch realizes at the song's pivotal point. That song simply makes me sad. Guess it's one of those songs I related to a certain person at a certain time. Ah, tenth grade...uh, where was I...

The noteworthy, fleeting "Set Me Free" actually has a quite optimistic, movie-soundtrack sound to it, so it's no wonder that it was featured on the Spirit movie soundtrack. It is an excellent display of Branch's vocal charisma, and it's an innocent, free tune that could very easily appeal to the younger generation. While it is not my absolute favorite on the album, it does what it's supposed to do wonderfully. "Something To Sleep To" is appealing and wistful, with attention-grabbing lyrics and impressive guitar work that eventually gains momentum to lead to the cool chorus. "How could I ever have been so blind?" Branch ponders. "You give me something to sleep to at night."

"Here With Me" has a really poppish, somewhat annoyingly repetitive beat. It's too bad, because I love the vocal style Branch adopts here, and the lyrics are fantastic. It gains points in the chorus, but those verses with that music is a bit too Spears for my personal taste. Overall, Branch makes the song listenable, but it's clearly no standout. The beginning of "Sweet Misery" makes me envision tons of Oompa-Loompas jigging around, don't ask me why. It's just always what I visualize. I love this song so much. With its medium-tempo and poignant lyrics, it is fun to listen to and could probably be related to by anyone who's been 15 before.

"If Only She Knew" snaps out of the melancholy sound, and nearly adopts a taunting sound, with those jumpy guitars and Branch's bordering-on-sassy sound here. However, it gets a bit gritter during the chorus. Although the lyrics are somewhat lame, it's a nice song. The best is yet to come! "I'd Rather Be In Love" is outstanding. I fell in love with this song on the first listen, and it's still amazing to this day. "I know that you can't fight love, so I won't complain / 'cause why I stop the fire that keeps me going on?" Branch deals with the ridiculously confusing emotions of first relationships, and everything just glides here. Her voice is top-notch here, working with top-notch instrumentation.

Gut-wrenching ballad time. "Goodbye to You" is just one of those songs that seems to take pleasure in walking right up to you, sticking its pretty little hands into your heart, then proceeding to rip your heart out slowly and painfully. Yes, make fun of me: this freaking song gets to me. Almost sounding like a page out of my journal, Branch mourns a love that will be no more. Once again, it deals with this heavy, heavy confusion, and it's even evident in the vocal inflections she uses here. "It hurts to want everything and nothing at the same time / I want what's yours and I want what's mine / I want you...but I'm not giving in this time," she decides at last. Beautiful song, end of story, and even if you think the rest of the album sucks - it's worth it for this song alone. I kid you not.

"Drop in the Ocean" is actually quite unlike anything else on the album. Does that mean it's bad? No! In fact, it's a standout track. Branch sounds eerily like Vanessa Carlton on this song -- yeah, remember how everyone compared them when they first came out? -- and there's a near-entrancing effect. With barely any accompaniment initially, Branch holds her own vocally, sounding pretty near perfect. Near the end of the song, the pace picks up, but the song never loses that untouchable, peaceful, cloudy feel that it consistently displays. Amazing, impressive song for an album closer.

The Spirit Room is light, reflective, emotional pop-laced-with-light-rock at its possible best. Even if you're not into the "singer/songwriter/guitar chick" thing, give Michelle Branch a chance here. While the topics are relatable to young people, there's a luminescent maturity displayed here that is freakishly rare. Although The Spirit Room is not without its few errors and a couple of skippables, it is a debut album not to pass up.





Recommended: Yes