Customer Reviews

Seaworthy

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Seaworthy wasn't written as a rock musical, but it certainly could have been one. It's a coherent collection of complex, piano driven songs. Too many rock musicals (and rock musicians versed in music theory) tend to forget that rocking out is as important as the technical nature of the craft. As a song-writer and performer, Margrit never makes this mistake. Her songs are both complex and cool. If you like Ben Folds or Rufus Wainwright, you'll want to check out Seaworthy.

Tori and Fiona ain't got nuthin' on True Margit...and what I mean by that is...in the past, when I wanted to put on music that "moved" me...I would usually choose either Tori Amos or Fiona Apple, cuz piano music moves me, and I love their poetry and use of the piano to express themselves. (I have been listening to both of them since the beginning of their careers) NOW...when I want to put on music that moves me...True Margrit is my first choice. Both of their CD's are so amazing that I can just play them over and over again and not only keep hearing different things with each song musically, but lyrically, I also hear different lines that I missed, or didn't register other times. I am looking forward to another new release, and in the mean time, I'll keep on rockin' to Seaworthy and Deceptively True...it's TRUE!!!!

Wow. From the heartbreakingly vulnerable (ballads From Another Zone and Great Praise) to the fantastically upbeat (Members Only, etal), this is a great record, old school--an experience to be savored from beginning to end. Songwriter Eichler is like a scientist in the lab of life, and finds her subjects (including herself) compelling creatures, and (here's the kicker) ultimately capable of great things. With lush, complex arrangements, surefooted musicianship at every step, songs that'll crack you up, make you scratch your head, sing along...SEAworthy is also HEARworthy.

Does True Margrit ever get tired of Ben Folds/Five comparisons? Think "The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner" with fewer references to the South and more lyrics exploring the existential status of the human soul. Susan Werner's voice, lyrics, and piano playing also come to mind, though in different proportions.

Like onions, ogres, and parfaits, this CD has layers. If you have some obsessive tendencies, it holds up quite well through a week at work listening on the laptop nonstop. I was hooked through Pandora by the piano bombast and clever theology of "If Heaven Knows" -- and there's a enough bombast and clever throughout the disc to satisfy anyone's Meat Loaf/They Might Be Giants sweet tooth.

On repeat play, what stood out for me was the thoughtful, unpretentious take on where we come from, where we are, and where we're going. It's tricky to make a record about that sort of thing without getting Heavy (And Using A Lot Of Capital Letters), but Margrit Eichler manages it beautifully.

Sometimes you can listen to the radio for hours and have the music float right over you. But then a new song starts and it immediately gets your attention and reminds you that music is supposed to be enjoyable. Such was the case with "True" by True Margrit off their album Seaworthy. Perhaps it was the strident piano that is soon accompanied by staccato cello that leads to an ominous verse that often takes a relaxed, hopeful breath in the simple chorus. More orchestration occurs as the song develops, at times refreshing and then suddenly threatening, taking the listener through many moods in just three and a half minutes without ever leaving it's melodic roots. Invigorating!

Although reminiscent of high pop artists like Lloyd Cole, XTC, and Elvis Costello, True Margrit, a power trio of piano, bass and drums, have material that is all their own, with the musicianship to boot. In these thirteen songs--all brilliant, each one very different from the next--songwriter Eichler explores the minefields of adult relationships, but does so through a totally original lens. With recurring science motifs, and nods to historical seaworthy ventures (there is mention of Bligh and his ill-fated Bounty here), this is a compelling album that will keep you on your toes every second. And with lush arrangements of oboe, sax, strings, and a crew of star Bay Area vocalists, this album--at once seductively poppy, challenging, funny, curious, touching, melancholy, brutally honest--will bestow new pleasures with every relisten. And you will.

Seaworthy is INDEED hearworthy! There, I said it anyway! I've been a fan of True Margrit for years and I expected great things from their latest release. I was far from disappointed. Margrit's songwriting is, once again, top notch and the band is in fine form. What can I say? I heart them!

This is an amazing listen. (A night out at one of their shows will similarly put you in an aquatic, wayfaring trance for weeks afterwards.) The selection, "Deliver Me" gets me a' bouncin' in my seat even as it gets me riled: "I'm not convinced there's still time/to believe in current events...'cause history recycles every bone/that heroes collect at the side of the road/homesick pirates weep and moan/deliver me." The song "Electricity" has a beautiful waltz tempo and is terribly sweet. And I adore "Uncurl" because Margrit brilliantly includes the phrase "the early bird/distributes all the sperm" and the word "fetus" in one song. Piano pride alert! Piano pride alert! "Members Only," with its deliciously sneaky lyrics, reminds me that some of us NEED our black and white keys- not a guitar string in sight.