2006-07-29
"Begin to hope", Regina Spector's new album, is her first release on a really big label, an occasion that usually puts on a lot of pressure on the artist along with great expectations and stress for die-hard fans. There's nothing more disappointing then seeing an artist you can almost consider your own becoming an item for all to see, or even worse, advertising some Pepsi or any other soft drink company. Regina will never let this happen to her.
You can see that Regina can help herself from being herself, you can start off reading the "thank you's" on the album's cover, you can also enjoy the drawings on it, or if you prefer to focus on the main thing here, her lyrics, the lyrics are entirely Regina, with all the aspects meaning from it.
First track "Fidelity" will take anyone out of balance, it's harder to see her uniqueness in there underneath the tight production and orchestral back up on her vocals and melody, in a way, this could be someone else singing here, and it will still sound the same.
The third track, "Samson", a remake from a self released album by Regina, is the first statement showing that this is Regina behind the mic, giving her story the way she wants it, this is the romantic, storyteller, poetic and beautiful Regina, another one to immediately fall in love with is "Fields below", intimate, dark room with candles pondering your thoughts kind of song, she is almost there singing next to you.
In my opinion, the 7th song, the only one in her native tongue Russian, is the song in which Regina feels entirely comfortable in her own skin, she lets herself loose in and way possible, and she manage to capture your ears, even though I can't understand a word she says.
Pay attention to track 11, "Lady" a beautiful tribute to Billie Holiday, and track number 2, "Better", which has a guest appearance by Nick Valensi (
The Strokes' guitarist), doing his thing, which is always good; the strokes and Spector by the way, go way back when they toured together on the "Room on fire" Storkes tour.
Regina Spector, metaphorically speaking (at least) is one of those girls you lay your eyes on in a bar, and you can't take them of, everything she does astounds you, even the most normal hand jester seems unequally her own, or even the way she drinks her Vodka (a bit of soviet kitsch huh?), she makes you her own, entirely under her spell. The new album, "Begin to hope”, features this Regina Spector, and I just can't take my eyes off.
Roy Povarchik
