Mint

Rachel Loshak, Mint

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 6, 2003)
• Original Release Date: 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Apple Blossom Records
• ASIN: B00008J7NW
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #193,411 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

1. Rain

2. Never Look Back

3. The Dreamer

4. Single Rose

5. Latin Rock III

6. No Words

7. Sweet As Sin

8. When The Moon And The Sun

9. Four-Leaved Clover

10. All Day Long

11. I Know I Could

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

Rachel is originally from England, but has lived in New York since 1995. She has been perfoming in New York City and the environs since then, as a singer/bassist with a varied assortment of musicians with her, and often solo, which is a unique experience in itself to hear her clear, angelic voice in contrast to the mellow rooted bass. Rachel has been playing for three years with Jason Crigler, who added his totally inspirational and unique guitar playing to the already unusual sound. Dan Rieser joined in the fall of 2001, and since then they have created a trio perfect for the individuality of Rachel's music. "Mint" is Rachel's third record, but the first to highlight the leaps forward in depth of musicianship and writing quality. "Mint" is produced by Morgan Taylor, who brings his own immense talents to the music in a beautiful way.

Product Description

"Mint" is the ultimate Rachel Loshak album, so far, because of the uniqueness of the songs, originality of the arrangements and intimacy and strength of her vocal style. She has attained a tight feel with her band, Jason Crigler on guitars and Dan Rieser on drums, that supports the delicate, while intense and direct, nature of her soul.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sexier, more mature, and more eclectic Loshak., February 26, 2003

By	D. Mok (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Rachel Loshak's first album, Firefly, had more of a touch of Eastern mysticism, but Mint is an even more confident and diverse collection of simply gorgeous music, reflecting on Loshak's growth as an artist in the last two years.

First off, the mix is clearer, giving instrumental parts and Loshak's magnificent voice room to breathe. Secondly, her songwriting remains structured and engaging, with lyrics that are rich in understated wordplay and quiet emotion. Loshak's bass guitar-based songwriting has paid off in spades; by anchoring the harmonic intent of the songs in the bassline, she gives guitarist Jason Crigler basis to colour and augment, while retaining a great sense of freedom for exotic fills and instrumentation.

And the songs are terrific, already well tested in a live setting. What they lose in live spontaneity, they gain in studio detail. The chorus melody of "Rain" is dazzlingly beautiful; "Single Rose" features gorgeous suspended electric-guitar chords and an angelic piano part, followed by an unusually fiery blues-guitar tone from Crigler; "Never Look Back" employs a signature Loshak motif, a buoyant, Eastern-flavoured bassline with her crystalline voice weaving a sumptuous sonic tapestry -- the contrast of Loshak's bell-clear soprano and insistent bass remains magical. While she's always had an amazing voice, she's gained more control in studio of her singing, and she sounds more confident than ever. "The Dreamer" is an atypical Loshak tune in its folksy acoustic guitar; "Latin Rock" features playful percussion parts and long, catchy vocal lines that flow effortlessly; and "Sweet as Sin" features one of her slyest lyrics.

There is more of a romantic leaning to the music on this album, but overall it casts a wider web both in sonics and topicality than Firefly. I listened through the whole album three times the first night I got it, and chances are it'll refuse to leave my CD player throughout 2003. This is just about as flawless an album as I can think of.