Customer Reviews

Katrina Elam

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Take a touch of Martina McBride's incredible vocal talent and throw in a dash of Chely Wright's downhome spunk ... and you have the terrific middleground debut of Katrina Elam. From the driving beat of DROP DEAD GORGEOUS to the lyrical heartbreak of THE BREAKUP SONG, Katrina drifts effortlessly in and out of melodies with the grace of a surprisingly accomplished singer. With a bit more promotion and airplay, she's a talent that should enjoy a great career in the world of country music. A rare exception to the current crop of C&W performers, Katrina manages to breathe life into every track of this first swing.

I just heard her this evening opening up for Keith Urban! I hadn't even recalled hearing her single yet, & didn't really think much of her opening up. (I was way too excited to see Keith Urban!)
I have to honestly tell you I was not really anticipating much of her, but was pleasantly suprised! She has a WONDERFUL voice, & her songs were fun & spunky! I expect to be seeing much more of her to come!
I really enjoyed "Strong Anything", "Drop Dead Gorgeous", and the song about a "real McCoy, Cowboy" (don't know the real title!) These are upbeat songs that I think women young & old will relate to in a special way of their own!
She also sang an extra touching song called "Flowers on the Side of the Road" that refers to the death of 2 friends. This one is a sobering reality of many people, & I am willing to bet (& I am not a gambler) she pulls quite a few heartstrings of listeners in a way that is unique to country music.
I think as a newcomer, she definitely shows serious promise. If she is as headstrong & determined as she appears to be, she will definitely make quite an impact! After hearing these songs from her, I am definitely buying her album!

This talented singer/songwriter is one of the best things that happened to country music in 2004. She is a mixture of both Martina and Faith put together with the way her voie sounds. It is hard to believe that this girl is under the age of 21 with the way she looks and sounds. The choice of songs that she choose you could tell that she was still a teenager when she sings "I Want A Cowboy" and "Drop Dead Gorgeous." One of the most powerful songs on this album is "The Breakup Song" which she done an outstanding job and you never could tell that she was a teenager. It was one of the most beautiful songs that i ever heard in my life and it was well written. It comes from the heart and soul and it's the truth. She sings another truthful song "Unbreakable" where she is singing that we must pick up ourselfs up and not leave someone or something bring us down. It will only make us stronger. There is not one bad song on this album.

1.) Strong Anything 3/5
2.) No End In Sight 5/5
3.) The Breakup Song 5/5
4.) I Want A Cowboy 5/5
5.) Unbreakable 5/5
6.) Flowers By The Side Of The Road 5/5
7.) Drop Dead Gorgeous 5/5
8.) Normal 3/5
9.) I Won't Say Goodbye 5/5
10.) Home Running Away 4/5
11.) Prelude To The Kiss 3/5

You can't get any better than this lady right here. She has an amazing voice and is one heck of a songwriter. She is the real deal.

Katrina Elam's made quite a splash as an artist to watch, thanks to her robust voice, young age, and the fact that she writes. Listening to this record, she does indeed seem to have assets beyond most artists her age, though some of these could use a little more maturing.

It's hard to tell how much or what parts of the songwriting Elam contributes to, because she doesn't have a solo songwriting credit on the album. All her credits are as a co-writer, possibly lyricist -- an estimate suggested (not proven) by Elam's lack of an instrumental credit on the record. That's not to be counted against Elam, though I would've loved to hear a solo Elam composition just as a comparison. However, I don't consider songwriting the biggest forte of this record. The arrangements are good, with lively acoustic guitars, good country grooves on the uptempo numbers, but the songs behind them often rely on the arrangements to carry them through. I just find many of the verses unengaging, with a vocal melody that often meanders and isn't memorable. "No End in Sight" suffers from that Achilles' Heel of young songwriters, which is alternating two notes three half-steps apart ("da de-da de-da de-da"), which almost always sounds like the songwriter can't find a good melody to fit on top of the chord progression. To be fair, even songwriting veterans often fall into this trap when they have a strange progression that resists vocal parts. "Unbreakable" has good lyric hooks, but too much melisma (a Mariah Carey trademark) serves to blur the nice central melody; and "Drop Dead Gorgeous" sounds aimless, hanging on an uptempo groove, but is melodically flat, not progressing or building well. The imagery in the lyrics can also sometimes lapse into country cliches (beer, coffee, cowboys etc. etc...), feeling automatic, as if fulfilling listener expectations of a country song, rather than inspired specifically by the song topic.

But if Elam's songwriting (or that of her collaborators) isn't always satisfying, her vocal performances are. Hear it on the radio without any background info, and you won't guess she's 20 years old. Her voice is confident, with good depth and technique, and it's her performance that elevates many of the weaker songs. With the strongest songs like the quietly romantic "Flowers by the Side of the Road", the sunny "Prelude to a Kiss" and the poignant "Home Running Away", she soars -- her dark-tinged voice is especially great for ballads, allowing her to grip the melody and work it, letting the listener enjoy the timbre of her voice. "Home Running Away", the best song on the record, is an example of what Elam can accomplish when she has sure-handed melodies and a tight song structure to work with. Vocally it's one of her most subtle performances on the album, the least eager to impress, and the most mature.

It's great to see a young artist, especially a country singer, taking part in her own songwriting, possibly the best way to control one's own artistic direction. Even though I found some of the songwriting a little flat, this is still a very listenable record, and Elam's voice is always nice to hear, no matter the material. There's potential for another Shelby Lynne here.

From start to finish this album does not dissapoint. Rarely is it that I have fully enjoyed every single song on an album but this album I love them all. It's impossible for me to pick a favourite song as I am partial to many of them such as Strong Anything, Normal, Drop Dead Gorgeous......I could go on.

This album will have your heart singing and your feet dancing!

Enjoy!!

I bought this album after seeing Katrina perform live. I was completely blown away by her performance and HAD to have this album, and I am incredibly happy with it! The songs are all wonderful and Katrina has such a great voice and you can really feel the emotions of each of the songs. She has written incredible songs that touch your heart and make you want to sing along. I highly reccomend this album for all music fans!

I've had the privilege of watching Katrina Elam grow up musically over the past 4 1/2 years. Living and promoting shows in Oklahoma, I've had her open dates for Eric Heatherly, Gary Allan, Chris Cagle, Black Hawk, & Ty Herndon. Trust me, in keeping with the long list of superstars coming out of Oklahoma (Reba, Vince, Toby, etc etc) Kat's the real deal and only going to get better. As a singer, Kat has range that parallels a young Martina McBride and at times Trisha Yearwood. Unlike many singers that rely on others for material, Kat writes the majority of her songs and has the ability to connect with her generation and older. All that said, I can personally tell you from dealing with Kat on a business level that she is a very hard-working, appreciative talent that is a professional and a very real person in every sense of the words. Unlike many brainless spoiled talents that get into the music business, Kat's earned everything she's gotten.

Ok enough about her - the debut has a number of well-written up-tempo catchy hooks that stick in your head: "Strong Anything" (#1), the current single "No End in Sight" (#2), "Drop Dead Gorgeous" (#7) are top 10 singles waiting to happen. Catchy, different, and fun. You can tell Kat kept herself entertained singing on the long road trips to Nashville. The real potential sleeper on this project is "Flowers on the Side of the Road" (#6)- a tune specifically chosen for a tragic death of two high school classmates. A genuine country tune that can hit young and old. Why 4 stars not 5? Ok, I'm not totally biased. Lots of up-tempo, it still lacks a career defining power ballad that can take Kat to the next level ("Flowers" and "I Won't Say Goodbye" #9 showcase Kat's powerful voice and excellent potential but don't stab you as great ballads can do) ... but its only the first project. It won't take long. Perhaps the scariest thing about Kat is that beside her good looks, personality, and genuine talent she's constantly honing her song-writing, singing, and stage show - now that she's surrounded herself with Keith Urban's management, Veteran Producer and hit makers Tony Brown & Tim DuBois, along with some top song-writers (Jon Rich & Stephony Smith among others), she is poised to be among the elite female artists not only in country but has natural cross-over potential as well. Great voices stick around in this business - entertainers that write, can consistently re-invent themselves become superstars that have long successful careers. Katrina Elam has all the right elements to be on that list.

Katrina Elam sells herself. Great voice, great songwriter (she wrote all but 1 or 2 of the songs on this CD), good role model. Her whole CD has a great sound. The songs are fun to sing along to and the lyrics often have a great message (as in songs "Flowers by the Side of the Road" and "Normal"). I think mostly women would relate to Katrina's style and song messages. I really love this CD!

At first I didn't think I would like this album, but I decided to buy it since they kept playing her on the radio. And its great!!!

1.) Strong Anything 5/5
2.) No End In Sight 5/5 (one of my fav songs on the album)
3.) The Breakup Song 5/5 (nice ballad, lyrics are great)
4.) I Want a Cowboy 5/5
5.) Unbreakable 4/5
6.) Flowers by the side of the road 5/5 (beautiful song)
7.) Drop Dead Gorgeous 5/5 (Best fast song on this album)
8.) Normal 5/5 (True lyrics and one of my favorites)
9.) I Won't Say Goodbye 5/5
10.) Home Runnin Away 5/5 (My fav slow song)
11.) Prelude to Kiss 2/5 (My least fav, I always skip it)

All in all this album is really great. So go and buy it.

I even felt the wind gusts all the way up here in Pennsylvania.
Katrina's 1st career single "No End In Sight" just blew me away. I have listened to music for over 20 years and never had a song that took me out by storm. When I heard it on the radio for the first time -- I said to myself -- WOW! That is quite a song! Katrina's freshman album is one of the best 1st albums I heard in nearly 14 years. Other songs I like a lot from the album are "The Break Up Song", "Unbreakable", and "I Won't Say Goodbye" and I am anxious and curious when her next single will be released. Katrina is on her way to big success and it is just only the beginning! Katrina is hot country! Want an talent heart felt album -- Get Katrina Elam's self-titled album!

Scotty Asti
Katrina Elam's Fan Club Memeber