Lucy Rose - Work It Out
- Written by Ben Macnair
Work It Out is one of those albums that starts with a foot strongly in one camp, before fast becoming something else completely. So opener ‘For You’ starts of as a calm Dido-like reverie of vocal and gently strummed acoustic guitars and keyboards, but then a dance beat kicks in, and takes the song in a new and different direction.
This direction fits with the feel of the songs on the album, many of which are happy and upbeat. Lucy Rose is recently married, and although this might have had a detrimental effect on many artists work, in Rose’s case it seems to have given it something of a glossy sheen. Before her debut album, Like I Used To, Rose’s distinctive voice could also be heard on releases by The Manic Street Preachers and Bombay Bicycle Club. As a largely self-taught musician, she started playing drums in her school orchestra, before learning guitar and keyboard, and this approach to music is shown in the performances caught on Work It Out, where she plays many of the instruments herself, as well as writing the material.
Her voice though, is the main selling point on this album, with influences as diverse as Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks and Joni Mitchell, to the glacial sheen of retro bands like A-ha, to a number of other influences, ranging from dance music, through country, rock and pop, there is something to appeal to many music fans.
Relentless drums and colourful chord progressions sit well under Lucy Rose’s voice, with songs such as ‘Our Eyes’ and ‘Nebraska’ having a definite 1980s sound and style to them, whilst a different mood is achieved with the high-life flavours of ‘Koln’, and the more drone driven sound of ‘Fly High (Interlude)’. The closing track ‘Into The Wild’ uses the bare minimum of musical backing to provide a showcase for Rose’s strong and emotive vocals.
Although the music is not going to fuel any revolutions, it is something new from old ingredients, with a retro feel that pushes beyond all of the usual touch-points, and an upcoming international tour with a live band will show these songs of to their best advantage.