There are certain artists that every music writer can show as one who started it all. For me, the artist is Michelle Branch. Of course, I was one of those pop-obsessed teens who ate everything on the radio at the time but Michelle's music changed all that, leading me to a world where music meant something. His 2001 debut, The Spirit Room, came at a very important moment as things started to change, especially in New York City right after 9/11. I started to feel different music at the time and the way I see everything I hear has not stopped since I got the album.
It's crazy to think that the last time Branch released his last note, Hotel Paper, I almost reached 15. When the singer found a lot of experience trying in the music industry and throughout his personal life, including a never-ending big label. limbo that prevented him from releasing two albums over the past decade, the singer persisted. Today, Hopeless Romantic, the first solo record in 14 years, was released and we can only assume that both Branch and its fans breathe a sigh of relief.
With the help of The Black Keys, Patrick Carney, Hopeless Romantic is a record we have anticipated from the Branch, making a decade of waiting a great deal. Sharing her recent divorce experience to fall in love again with Carney (the goal of a relationship, for sure) notes digging suffering never really has it all knowing all the while life is taking place before our eyes. Add a brand new singing sound and you've become a winner!
By opening "Best You Ever," we were given a glimpse of what was expected in the lyrics but when the album was playing, we soon found out we were not ready at all! "You are Good" is a surprise that we are all waiting for because some serious indie vibrations come into play, making us rethink everything we ever knew about Branch and why we have never heard this side before. "Fault Line" continues this idea with Jenny Lewis filling In The Valley Below vibe. Obviously there is no shortage of moments to lower the window and remove every word.
"Heartbreak Now" is a national anthem for those who seem to always live in unrequited hell of love set to the bleakest soundscapes of 2017 ever heard when the title song, "Hopeless Romantic," tends to build a stubborn love story and all of those ways can often 'eat you alive.'
Energy will change with "Living A Lie" - a definite change for Branch - along with alt-pop jam, "Temporary Feeling," while "Knock Yourself Out" is a moment of Alanis Morissette Branch that will fit beautifully made love in the middle of a Small Pill with Jagged .
Things just take off with "Not A Love Song," the Tame Impala-esque "Last Night," and "Carry Me Home," especially with the line, "I think I love you, but what do I know?" the ever-present theme of self-realization on this recording is empowering, especially for those who tend to fall in line with the same mistakes because it's everything we've ever known. The decisions we make to finally make some important changes are what really shape us and the transition subject is often unbearable not to be written.
The "Bad Side" surprisingly reminds me of synthpop up-and-comers, flor, and I can easily imagine them killing this one as a cover! "Your devil plays with my uncle," Croons branches as he investigates the dark side of a person while still discovering beauty in all that does not shine - something we should all try to embrace.
Everything becomes a little darker with the "Shadow" when closing the song, "City," plays the same sensitivity. Perhaps the most gripping song in the song lyrics, "City" is filled with raw honesty and emotion - something always held by Branch fans and will continue to be valuable. It's good to have this girl back again.