Inara George’s debut shows off her stunning voice and eclectic musical styles on her disc “All Rise.” George has previously done collaborations with some LA based bands and a series of movie scores, bringing her to this solo collaboration project with Michael Andrews of “Donnie Darko” score fame. The disc is an energetic, folk-y, series of simple yet enchanting melodies, mostly due to George’s voice.
The opening track “Mistress,” while not impressive enough to speak of, sets up the disc as George’s vocal playground. From the moment the acoustic and synthesized sounds break to open up to George’s melodic yet gritty voice, the disc takes off as a welcome addition to the genre of female indie / acoustic folk-rock girls. The disc then begins to speed up with the very fast paced, foot tapping “Genius” and slinks through George’s ballad “Fools in Love” halfway through it.
While there are many moments that George’s voice is almost a legible version of Bjork, and you wish her voice was drowned out by the music just a little bit more (“No Poem”), there are more highs than lows throughout the disc. The acoustic guitar, pop-y synthesizer, and occasional piano inclusion make for some high spirited, energetic, “sit in a park and play under the sun” kind of tracks.
The slower, penultimate “A Day” doesn’t slow down enough to disappoint, and keeps to George’s goal of an enthusiastic, bubbly, energetic disc without throwing out the depth for pop. The most experimental track on the disc, the closing “Everybody Knows,” drowns out her echoed vocals with some steady ambient noise, creating a unique bookend to the folk inspired, feel good disc that proves George has got the vocals and complementary musical ability to interest and entertain listeners. |