Today's Talent

Ok, so unless you are a new born baby, or you have recently fell off the face of the earth,
you’ve probably noticed there’s been quite a lot of British female artists popping up all over the place.

This isn’t necessarily something THAT new, however what makes it different now is that these ladies are (in most cases) exceptionally talented. We really do have quite a selection to choose from at the minute. All of them seem to have their own persona, it really is quite a special time for homegrown talent.

The one artist that really catches my attention at the moment is a very talented young lady who goes by the name of Paloma Faith. I have to admit I hadn’t jumped on the Paloma band wagon as quickly as everyone else, but I had heard her name thrown around a lot and seen her on various chat shows or award ceremonies.

In a bid to stay ‘hip and with it’ (which is harder than you might think. I never know if I’m a Belieber, a Directioner , Heartbeat or a Little Monster... so many to chose from!) I downloaded Fall to Grace.

If you are looking for a quick review for your lunch break, then here goes: Buy it! If you have a longer attention span, or your stomach is full then please read on... :-D

Like I said earlier I wasn’t an immediate Paloma Faith fan but I knew of her through the magical power that is the media………….ok ok I’ll be honest, I heard her new song on the radio and thought it was great but it was only after I’d seen her on Graham Norton that I really knew I wanted to hear more.

On Graham Norton she was just about to perform ‘Picking up the Pieces’ but because the episode was recorded I STUPIDLY began to fast forward through her song. Fortunately, I pressed play half way through as I was intrigued to see if she could sing live... WOW she has a hell of a voice on her. She had such a soulful sound, nothing like any other female singer out today. She didn’t seem like a copycat popstar, she’s extremely unique, and with a voice like that she has every right to be. Needless to say I rewound it and watched from the beginning... by the way Paloma if you’re reading this, it’s not true, I watched it from the beginning and enjoyed every second.

If it’s any consolation, after she finished I actually did say ‘wow, she’s good, I wouldn’t mind her album’ and then the next day I downloaded it, legally might I add! *Keep the music industry alive*

There’s something about her that catches your attention, she’s genuinely eccentric, but not in a meat dress kind of way. Her craziness is a bit less obvious. I saw her on Alan Carr’s Summer Spectacular last week and she came out in such a bizarre headdress, I didn’t know what to make of it. As strange and obscure as it looked, I kind of forget about it and it just blended in with her whole image, it was like an optical illusion that you lose and find over and over again, yet you are still intrigued each time…….

Ok I’ve gone off point. Sorry. Mesmerised by the memory.

All seriousness though, I genuinely got goose bumps listening to some of her songs from the Fall to Grace album, not just because of her raw (and at times earthy voice) but the fact you can truly feel her telling the story she is trying to portray.

I think it really helps when an artist writes their own music, you can really get lost in a song with them... and Paloma Faith has the ability to draw you in quite easily. It’s the kind of album you can put on in the background at home, or in bed while relaxing, driving to work, or while your writing, there’s no particular mood you need to be in, it’s such easy listening. Don’t get me wrong though, as with any album you do come across the odd song that if you’re not in a very good mood it might stress you out, or make you angry….. or is that just me??

Also, be warned, if you are feeling a little vulnerable, some of the songs are very deep and they can catch you off guard, especially if you are going through any kind of heartbreak, you may find yourself sobbing the words “EVERY ONE I’VE EVER LOVED HAS LEFT ME LONELY”. You have been warned. And no, of course I’m not speaking from personal experience……..*looks around shiftily*

If you do buy this album, please make sure you listen to the words in the songs, there’s nothing that annoys me more than when somebody says they don’t like a song, but they have no idea what it’s about, they just heard some music and skipped or turned it off, or even worse, they don’t think they like the artist so they judge the songs before even trying them. Listen to the stories being told to you, allow yourself to step into their world, open up your mind, trust me it’s worth it.

Music aside, she’s a bit of a cracker jack, if you’ve seen her being interviewed you’ll know what I mean. She’s not shy and certainly isn’t scared to get involved in some good old banter. Quote “I gave birth to him” when Alan Carr asked how she knew Mo Farah. I repeat – Cracker Jack hahaha! It’s so refreshing though to see how happy she is within herself and how comfortable she is in the ‘Celeb World’ without coming across as arrogant or big headed, she’s very down to earth.  More people need to take a leaf out of her book, and needless to say she sings live, but with a voice like hers, she has no reason not too.

So to summarise if you like songs that have real words and tell stories, you won’t be disappointed. If you like singers that soulfully flow through songs and make you feel like the song is being sung just for you, you wont be disappointed. If you like real music, you wont be disappointed. So what I’m trying to say is, I wasn’t disappointed, and I’d like to think you wouldn’t be either.