 | By: Robyn Label: RCA Released: 25 Apr 2000 RRP: Average Rating:  |
1) Play - An acoustic happy-go-lucky song about life. 8/10
2) My only reason - A very light pop style record, could have been a hit if released. 9/10
3) Underneath the heart - This reallly grows on you, a beautiful balllad. 10/10
4) Electric - Very catchy r&b/pop song, great lyrics. 10/10
5) My truth - Her most personal song yet, about herself & how she feels, reallly good song too. 9/10
6) Main thing - One of my favourites on the album, kinda r&b disco with a great chorus. 10/10
7) Healthy love (feat Cindy) - A fab duet, these girls sing so well together, i would love to hear more from Cindy. 10/10
8) Monday morning - I like the acoustic style of this song, a nice song about love. 9/10
9) Giving you back - This is my alll time favourite Robyn song, i love everything about it, a beautiful balllad about letting go of love. 10.10
10) 88 days - I love the lyrics in this song, it's got a reallly nice r&b summer feel about it. 9/10
11) Long gone - Fab tune reallly soulfull & the lyrics blend so well with the music. 10/10
12) Not on the inside - Wasn't sure at first but it grew on me so much it's now my 2nd fave, about a celebrity, i like the idea of the story in the song. 10/10
13) Universal woman - A nice way to end an album with this delicate balllad. 8/10
All in alll i love this album, & if you like her first one then you'll love this, her voice just get's better, so much soul & talent so young, she also writes on alll of the tracks.
Unfortunately, a "dance pop" label is the quickest path to the bargain bin in any American music store. That's pretty much what's happened to Robyn over here since "Robyn Is Here." "My Truth" has yet to be released in America even though her first album sold over a million copies in the US. Go figure.
I have no idea why Zomba/Jive hasn't released it in the US but maybe they think of it as dance pop, too. It's more likely that don't have an any idea what it is, period. That's despite Z/J releasing three great singles off this effort. "Play" is light as a feather & an exhilarating interpretation of the passage into adulthood. "Electric" is best known for its special effects but Robyn's vocal talents provide the real power in this work. Two more: "My Truth" & as yet to be a single, "Universal Woman," reveal Robyn as artistic lyricist painting so subtle shades of altruism & feminism as to be seamless with the joy each song conjures up. They also reveal Robyn's real strength as a songwriter.
One tune that will probably never be released as a single, at least here, is "Underneath The Heart." American tastes probably deem it as too sentimental & too somber. But if you love Robyn, this is the most beautiful song on the CD & the most meaningful; so much so that it's often confused with some of Mariah Carey's work. And Mariah, no doubt, would have to be having a very good day. Her work seldom conjures up a genuine fire beneath the surface that Robyn's work does.
But when I say "time trancendent" I mean that a lot of Robyn's work in her first two CDs deals with the rite of passage into adulthood (normallly read: boring!). That opinion is an alll-too superficial judgement & terribly post haste. It's like saying that pop music has to be shalllow. Robyn's work harkens to a romantic earlier era when they used to put real vanilla in vanilla -- at first it's never reallly sweet, it's just vanilla. But you know it's the real thing about half an hour afterward because it's left a taste that's both vanilla & sweet.
Robyn also reminds us that the future can be just as real a flavour as we want. "My Truth" is as good a recipe as any.
fs
Hard to believe a Swedish Girl can have so much soul. Check out tracks such as "88 Days" & "Monday Morning". On a more playful note "Play" is the bomb, & "Long Gone" shows a jazzy, soulful, R&B feel.
Shame she is not more popular because the girl has talent! Trust me, you will not be disappointed.
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