Returning to the Sun: Sarah Perrotta, The Well

This review marks another first. It’s the first time I’ve been approached by a musician to review a work instead of me searching the artist out in whatever way, be it buying the album as an unknown phantom or approaching the band myself. The local artists are the ones making all the firsts here, bless their hearts.

Is it my imagination, or are there a growing number of female piano pop artists? I swear, there’s a new one popping out of the woodwork every time I turn around. Don’t take this the wrong way, though: I’m a big sucker for piano pop and the feminine voice. That’s why I was rather pleased when Sarah Perrotta emailed me to ask if I would review her recently-released full-length album The Well.

Upon first opening the envelope and giving the album the look-over, I was astounded at the quality of the overall package. The photography on the outside and inside of the digipak and on the liner notes is quite nice. Liner notes with lyrics are a definite plus. While I usually rip on albums that lack features like outstanding artwork and printed lyrics, I typically go easy on independent and self-released albums as far as these things are concerned. However, I feel that it’s important to note that this is a self-released album that looks like it came from a big label in terms of overall quality. Better than the big labels, actually, since the bigwigs are ditching niceties like lyrics and decent art and photography. It’s obvious to me that much effort was spent to make The Well visually appealing.

After listening, I find the sound quality matches the look. I’m going to place Ms. Perrotta on the list of artists that make really good music, assemble a fantastic album, and do so completely independently. I still can’t believe that this is a self-release. Gone are the days when “self-release” meant a twice recorded-over cassette tape with a photocopied liner, or a hand-burned CD scribbled on with Sharpie.

What sets The Well apart from others in this style of music is Perrotta’s mature voice. It seems like so much of piano pop is populated by whimsical and high-pitched, barely-out-of-their-teens voices. Music of this genre tends towards being overly sweet and all butterflies and flowers. Sarah truly shines in that she does the whole piano pop thing without being so saccharine as to make you want to go to the dentist afterwards. As such, The Well is an entirely pleasant experience from start to finish. At about 48 minutes long, it doesn’t overstay its welcome; it actually feels much shorter than it is. Her lyrics are strong enough to set her apart as an exquisite lyricist, but they are not straining for profundity at the expense of overall sound. The result is an excellent balance of complexity and accessibility, sweeping away the listener with her touching works.

Some notes on songs that I feel warrant mention include: the lyrics to opening track “Out of Grace”: “your cynical thoughts are holding you back” … get out of my head, woman! I like being cynical! I really enjoy “Rooftops.” The intense “Steel” rocks hardest, but some might level the criticism that she’s trying to be Tori Amos with this one; I don’t subscribe to that view personally. Point in fact (*WARNING: INCOMING DETOUR*), I find that many piano pop/rock musicians these days suffer the comparison to Tori Amos, and in many cases unfairly. Take A Fine Frenzy for example: being a girl, having red hair, and sitting behind a piano got her labeled an Amos clone before anyone actually heard her music. I despise a reviewer that can’t accept the fact there are more pianists in popular music than that loon. There’s not much comparison here other than a piano and a powerful voice, so get over it (*END DETOUR*). Don’t mistake “Country” for a political song; it strikes me as a tongue-in-cheek lament at how no one will take responsibility for what’s happening in this country. “The Storm” also appeals to me; I’ve always loved songs about going away, taking a journey; this one is plain beautiful. “Midnight Lullaby” is another favorite; very soulful. “Carry You Home” touches all the rights spots; the accordion on this track makes it work so well.

The Well features some potent names in the music industry. Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson, Liquid Tension Experiment, and the list goes on) plays bass, plus providing Chapman Stick on the one song he’s not playing bass on. Garth Hudson, who has worked with just about everyone under the sun, including Bob Dylan, The Band, Neko Case, Eric Clapton, Roger Waters, Wilco… forget it; I’ll be typing this all night if I listed everyone. Garth plays accordion on two tracks. Grammy winning producer Malcolm Burn mixed The Well; he’s best known for working with Emmylou Harris (her album Red Dirt Girl is what he won the Grammy for) and Daniel Lanois. A not-yet famous name to appear on The Well is my friend Erica Quitzow. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you already know all about her (speaking of Quitzow, her album, and Setting Sun’s album, official release today). Erica provides violin on three tracks. Of course, her band members Chris Lane` and John Watson, as well as other guests Jay Perrotta, Jimmy Goodman, Lisa Donald, and Barry Medenbach, all work to make the music on this record quite amazing.

I haven’t much bad to say about The Well. I feel that Garth Hudson was an excellent addition to the personnel; however, his accordion playing could have been used to color some more of the tracks other than just the two that he appears on (first and last songs “Out of Grace” and “Carry You Home”). Maybe they tried this and it didn’t sound good, maybe it got trimmed during mixing; who knows. I’m not going to ding her too much for that, not when what I'm hearing is so good. While I find this album totally palatable as it stands, it feels like it could use just a little extra kick to really make it really knock the socks off. If anything, its pleasantness is too uniform.

I’m not going to mislead anyone; this is not a blanket statement that everyone will like this album. If female singer-songwriters armed with pianos are your thing, then I heartily recommend this to you. However, if you are not big on either pianos or female vocalists, then this is most likely not going to be the converting album. While she can be intense at moments, Sarah’s mentality strikes me more as “gentle breeze” than “gale-force winds.” If you demand wild, rip-you-out-of-your-seat music, chances are The Well isn’t going to impress you.

However, I’m impressed even though I typically reach for the wild stuff. As it stands, The Well is a beautiful example of determined effort. Every aspect of this album shows a distinct care towards the total package that lands in the hands of the listener. The work put in on all fronts definitely shows, and I am glad to have been given the opportunity to review such a fine artist. My cynical thoughts usually are holding me back, but Ms. Perrotta has done a fine job of holding back my cynical thoughts.



Sarah Perrotta's website, myspace, and CD for sale at CDbaby.com