The Lovely [Import]

Mara Carlyle | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 24, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Accidental
• ASIN: B0002BNY5U
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #256,521 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Mara Carlyle, singer-songwriter and saw player extraordinaire, cut her teeth singing her way through church music, bluegrass, music hall, indie rock, opera and electronica. Her beautiful collaborations with techno innovators Plaid (released on Warp) were followed by a guest appearance on The Matthew Herbert Big Band’s Goodbye Swingtime album in 2003. The Lovely is her debut album as a solo artist, a selection of bitter-sweet songs about love, death, courage and murder (songs born on nightshifts in hospitals and hostels). Dark tales sung with a smile...

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly Well Titled, February 28, 2005

By 

the_robert "the_robert" (los angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lovely (Audio CD)

Caught a song on the radio a while back and found my way to the disc. A twist of a traditional suite of songs both beautifully performed and creatively arranged. Novel but never showy would be the best way to describe the sounds, which center about a haunting blend of gospelesque backing vocals and spartan string and keyboard sounds. The product of a gifted singer with open ears and an exurberance in her craft. A debut that lies somewhere in the world of the esoteric beauty in minature of Bjork and the respect for traditional song forms found in some of the more interesting work of say Fiona Apple. High reccomendations.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Luxuriant music from no particular era, November 22, 2005

By 

Beketaten "beketaten" (Pangea) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lovely (Audio CD)

Mara Carlyle is a woman whose music is a seamless blend of various musical facets; slide guitar, synthesizers, languid choirs and...She plays the saw! She plays it effortlessly in such a fashion as one falling to sleep and into a dream....Her voice tangos and sways and bounces in duet with each beguiling element of her sirenesque and haunting yet whimsical balladry.
This album is indeed worthy of its title, and if you don't believe me, you have to believe that it will sink in as you listen to it repeatedly...It will unconciously be absorbed by your cereberal cortex!

3 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars could have been so much better,.., July 28, 2005

By 

goodo23 (Melbourne Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lovely (Audio CD)

this album got great reviews all over the place, so flying blind and only hearing the 1st and 2nd track on another site I decided to buy this cd, I wish I hadnt, its unfortunate because she has an amazing voice, but all the songs are poorly constructed and in some her singing is down right ugly, she tries for notes that are out side her range and it just sounds terrible, I think plaid ( the producer ) has a lot to answer for becasue of this.
The album kinda reminds me a little of k.d langs "even cow girls" soundtrack, but much worse........hopefully her next album she'll have some more honest people around her letting her know what sounds good and what sounds crap.