A Brilliant and Honest New Album from Catlea
A new album release from Catlea delivers a very unique brand of honesty and the form of several styles that encompass everything from alternative pop to singer-songwriter and folk, and even a bit of rock here and there but it's all rolled up into this one big record and throughout it all you get the feeling that these songs are like chapters in the artist's life.
The language barrier album hits hard in certain ways. Some of her lyrics can be brutally honest and even descriptive to the point where you can picture certain things in your head as songs unfold.
I think this was something cathartic for her to write and release but for whoever is listening to it, it feels very relatable at different points of the record.
She gets right into it with the first track called "Welcome to the Show" which introduces you to some of her edgier styles but also some of that honesty as well.
The track is riddled with some great guitar work adding a rock backbone but the whole thing has an almost theatrical approach with different kinds of instrumentation that let the song come through feeling incredibly lush and full-bodied.
And then you have songs like "Like Me", which comes through softer and crisper with a colorful pop overcoat, reminiscent of something that was on the radio in the 90s on contemporary pop stations.
One of my favorite aspects about this album is the sheer fact that you can hear many different influences throughout its course and I found that very alluring.
By the time you get halfway through this record, you begin to expect the unexpected although there are some staple styles and sounds throughout the record, of course.
This is one of those albums that you should listen to from beginning to end because otherwise, you won't get the full scope of what it has to offer.
Listening to one or two tracks will give you an idea of what may come ahead in terms of lyrical honesty and detail but, you only understand that. Just the fact that there is an emotional backbone behind a lot of these songs.
Listening to the full album will give you the range of what it offers as a whole musically.
"Crumbling" is one of my favorite tracks on the record and that's because it blends both the colorful and edginess seamlessly and also boasts that incredible honesty and straightforwardness that she can really give out throughout the record.
Her vocal approach ranges throughout the album too. It's like she falls into character depending on which song she's doing.
There's always a bit of swagger but at times it's just more open-hearted and bright while at others, it haunts a bit.
Beautifully approached vocals throughout the whole record let these songs feel alive and breathing.
There is a lot of inner thought that comes out and it takes a level of bravery to just come out and spit it like that.
There's a lot to soak in. Many layers of sounds, textures, pop-coated and rock riddled atmospheres, and stories to tell.
These are the kinds of things that make an album feel big. This album certainly feels massive and incredibly enjoyable at the same time.
Wrapped up in it and engulfed in all the different soundscapes and honesty that it delivers and I feel like that's something that makes it incredibly authentic.
You can definitely tell that Catlea has no problem giving pieces of herself with her songs and I feel like that is one of the more important aspects of the record.
We all need artists like this. Creators that deliver truths and put down their walls when they're making something.
These are the things that let us connect to songs.
I would definitely suggest once again, listening to this entire record from start to finish. It is 10 tracks and about 35 minutes long so it's incredibly worth that time to drink in some of this record and swim around in the atmospheres that it gives off.
Take a deep dive into this one and see what it does for you.
