katmar's Full Review: Afterglow [Import Bonus CD] by Sarah McLachlan
In my review of Beth Hart's CD Leave The Light On I talked about honesty, and how many artists lack it. I went on to say that many just write down crap disguised as music, and pass it off on us.
Sarah McLachlan is one of our most gifted vocalists, but her weakness has always been her writing. I can honestly say that not until Fumbling Towards Ecstasy had she written one song that touched me. Not one.
On Surfacing she came out like a lion, and made her best recording. I had hopes that Sarah had finally found her "muse," and that her best was yet to come.
I was wrong.
Who Is She? A Very Brief History
Sarah McLachlan has released five studio albums:
Touch - 1989 (Sucked)
Solace - 1992 (Sucked)
Fumbling Towards Ecstasy - 1994 (Good)
Surfacing - 1997 (Great, for the most part)
And now Afterglow - 2003 (Sucks)
In between, she released a live acoustic EP entitled Freedom Sessions (1995) which was comprised of songs from Fumbling Towards Ecstasy.
Then, in 1999, she released Mirrorball, another live album - a greatest hits, if you will, featuring songs from various albums.
McLachlan has sold 22 million records.
She has won three Grammys.
She founded Lilith Fair when record executives told her that she couldn't tour with another woman, as women don't sell tickets. So Sarah put together a ton of women, and toured with Lilith Fair for three years, (which sold over two million tickets), and raised seven million dollars for charities in the process.
McLachlan then took time off to have a family. She is the mother of a little girl named India.
Four months into her pregnancy, McLachlan's mother died.
This is her first CD since then.
Just An Oh By The Way
I'm going to use Surfacing as a point of reference in this review. Why? It's her best album, her best writing, and her best vocal performance in the studio.
Its brilliance serves as a baseline for what she's capable of.
On Afterglow, unfortunately, you'll hear nothing of what she's capable of.
What's Wrong With This CD?
First, let me say this: when someone loses their mother, or anybody close to them, grief can shut them down. A state of numbness sets in. There are places you just can't go.
I understand that from watching what my girlfriend Kathy went through.
On the other hand, giving birth to a child can open up a world of emotions you never had before. Things you never dreamed you could feel.
So while one could argue that grief may have her shut down, one would think that with her daughter, she would at least have some sort of emotional well to draw on.
This might make more sense after I'm done.
So what's wrong with this CD?
*There are very few musical variations, from one song to the next.
*There is nothing sung with passion, heart, or feeling.
*The lyrics are generic, bland, and meaningless.
*Even Sarah's voice doesn't shine here, anywhere.
Want examples? Good.
The CD
Fallen opens the CD, and it's single Number One. If you read the lyrics, they mean something. A battle is clearly raging.
Heaven bend to take my hand and lead me through the fire, be the long awaited answer to a long and painful fight. Truth be told I tried my best, but somewhere along the way, I got caught up in all there was to offer... but the cost was so much more than I could bear.
Sounds good, right? Yes. Except she sings this like she's singing of the new falling prices at Wal-Mart. Everything's all lilting and pleasant, and never once do I hear even one note of angst, pain or distress.
A good writer would have a melody that reflected the lyrical make-up. A haunting melody, an eerie melody, anything but this. As it is, I feel nothing.
In World On Fire, McLachlan's voice doesn't change one bit. She's still doing the Wal-Mart ad. Only this time the song is about what's "going on in the world" and how scary it all is. Except she doesn't sound scared, or like she has a worn heart (which she claims to have).
Maybe the big clue is this line: I'll try and hold it in. Well, you succeeded there, girl. You held it in so well that I have no idea what you're saying, and furthermore don't care.
And how's this for depth? We part the veil on our killer sun, stray from the straight line on this short run. The more we take the less we become. The fortune of one man means less for some.
I'm stunned by those revelations, Sarah. Read a pamphlet from Greenpeace or something? My goodness...
And she's still sad on Stupid, whose title describes the song, even though the chorus has at least one moment of feeling in it. Not enough to save the song, but what could save words like these?
Sleep has left me alone to carry the weight of unraveling where we went wrong. And all I can do is hang on, to keep me from falling into old familiar shoes.
I never fell into my shoes, but okay then.
Drifting seems to be about getting lost in celebrity, but after six years out of the limelight, this rings so false, it should have been torn out of the wall.
You walk in a room and the world stops to stare, you mesmerize all who are caught in the glare of the spotlight that follows wherever you go. Does it light up the emptiness?
First, don't flatter yourself, and second, gag me.
And the same goes for Train Wreck. If she truly is a "train wreck waiting to happen," then the trains are barely moving, and they both have huge cushioning to prevent any injuries.
And if all it takes to stop this wreck is his "sweet embrace," it ain't all that bad, girlfriend.
From your mouth it's all that I wish, the mercy of your lips... just one kiss... until I can breathe again, so that I can sing again...
Blah blah blah.
Then we have Push which gave me hope that things were picking up. I think it was just the change in melody that threw me, though. 'Cause lyrically, this is schmaltzy pap that's been recycled at least a bazillion times by better writers.
Every time I look at you the world just melts away. All my troubles, all my fears dissolve in your affections. You've seen me at my weakest, but you take me as I am. And when I fall you offer me a softer place to land.
Didn't she steal that last line from Allison Moorer, by the way? Or was it "softer place to fall"? Same difference, as my mom says. Unadulterated crap with a nice melody.
And just so Hallmark and every movie and TV show has a Sarah song to play for the next five years, we have the attempted follow-up to Angel. Only this one's called Answer.
Here's one comparison I said I was going to do. I always use the quote "God is in the details," and He is. Here are a few lines from this song.
I will be the answer at the end of the line. I will be there for you while you take the time. In the burning of uncertainty, I will be your solid ground. I will hold the balance if you can't look down.
First of all, how is she going to be the "solid ground" if she's "a train wreck waiting to happen," and has displayed nothing so far but a need for mercy, and a respite from the fight? Okay, I'm ranting.
Now, here's a sample from Angel. See if there's any difference.
In the arms of the angel, fly away from here. From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear. You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie. In the arms of the angel may you find some comfort here.
Besides the lyrical detail, "Angel" also features a melody that's gorgeous, and some vocals that will melt you into whatever it is you're sitting on.
This eye for detail is something that Sarah has lost. Along with, as I've stated so often, her ability to convey any emotion of any sort. "Answer" isn't "Angel," and Sarah M. has fallen into the familiar shoes of bad songwriting.
Time offers some detail, lyrically, and I think I heard some feeling here and there. In a great album, this song might have only been a slight miss. But on this one, where a winner is sorely needed, it stands out as one a big loss. Why? It doesn't mean anything.
You send your thieves to me silently stalking me, dragging me into your war. Would you give me no choice in this, I know you can't resist trying to reopen a sore.
And the chorus? One line: I need just a little more silence, I need just a little more time.
For what? Oh, I think the courage to pull away from him. Huh? Yeah. See, the song makes little sense. So in ten songs of nothingness, she finally finds some details, and they're put to use like this. big shrug
More confusion ensues in Perfect Girl. She says that his version of romance is cruel, that his expectations bury her. He twists her words, and makes her feel like she's the one to blame for "all of this."
Is she angry? Hell no. ??? Here's the chorus:
Don't worry, you'll find the answer if you let it go. Give yourself some time to falter. But don't forgo the knowledge that you're loved no matter what, and everything will come around in time.
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttt?!! spit rant kick spit some more GAG!
And then we end on the lovely, shockingly downbeat bullsh*t Dirty Little Secret. Apparently fame has caused a rift in a relationship again. Gawd, it must be awful.
I'm so tired of this town where every tongue is wagging. When every back is turned they're telling secrets that should never be revealed. There's nothing to be gained from this but disaster.
Can anyone hear me snoring? Just curious.
And she's oh so sorry that he's leaving her, because...
If I had the chance, love, I would not hesitate to tell you all the things I never said before.
But I guess she can't do that due to all of the wagging tongues. THIS SONG MAKES NO SENSE!!!!!!
Welcome to the end of the album!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It freaking sucks!!
Overall Summary
Nice Try, But No Cigar:
Fallen
Stupid
You Call This Music?
World On Fire
Drifting
Train Wreck
Push
Answer
Time
Perfect Girl
Dirty Little Secret
Why Am I So Angry?
Sarah McLachlan's an awesome vocalist, and she's capable of writing songs that chill me, haunt me, and move me.
Think she can't write with great detail?
Hey your glass is empty. It's a hell of a long way home. Why don't you let me take you? It's no good to go alone. I never would have opened up, but you seem so real to me. And after all the bullsh*t I've heard, it's refreshing not to see... I don't have to pretend, she doesn't expect it from me. -- Good Enough
You live in a church, where you sleep with voodoo dolls, and you won't give up the search for the ghosts in the halls. You wear sandals in the snow and a smile that won't wash away. Can you look out the window without your shadow getting in the way? -- Building A Mystery
Winter here's cold, and bitter... it's chilled us to the bone. I haven't seen the sun for weeks, too long, too far from home. It feels just like I'm sinking, and I claw for solid ground. I'm pulled down by the undertow... I never thought I could feel so low... and oh darkness I feel like letting go. -- Full Of Grace
See what I'm saying? She can write. She has it in her. Where did it go? I don't know.
Great artists, many times, use music as an outlet, as a way of taking an emotion as debilitating as grief, to create their finest work.
I'm not sure if Sarah McLachlan is a great artist or not. Her body of work hasn't proven that one way or the other. She has only one excellent piece of music (maybe two) to her credit. Maybe she's just average with a voice that places her higher than she deserves to be placed.
I love Sarah McLachlan. I don't like to write a piece this scathing and sarcastic. (Well, okay, it's a little cathartic....) But as fan, I expect more from Sarah McLachlan than this. Especially after six years out of the studio. And going through what she's gone through.
As for Sarah's take on the songs? She seems quite happy, according to her website. In speaking about writing each song, she says:
"I have to be able to break it down and still feel its strength acoustically on piano or guitar. If the essence is strong, you can do whatever you want with it, it'll still be good."
Not these songs, babe. They reek of phoning it in.
Go buy Surfacing or Mirrorball if you want to hear Sarah at her best.
If you were looking forward to this CD, sorry. Join the ranks of the disenchanted.
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