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 Caught in the Carousel "There will be music despite everything"
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Sam Shrieve
Bittersweet Lullabies
Colorburst Soundfield
Sam Shrieve is the kind of singer/songwriter who knows how to get right to the glimmering center of a pop song. On his debut album, the current Berklee School Of Music student checks in with eleven numbers that positively glow. "Beautiful" is hypnotic and sonorous; a lustrous string arrangement by Pete Scaturro adds to the sheer romanticism of "Kiss You" and "Sanctuary" is a thoughtful number that sounds lifted respectfully from Simon and Garfunkel's songbook. Later, "Hey Adrian" is wistful and lush; "Second City" is a playful pop romp and "Welcome To Your Life" is a plaintive and affecting album-closing ballad. Accompanied by Bill Frisell on both "I'll Be There" and a cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" Shrieve demonstrates he could very well be a star in the making. The latter track may be superfluous at this point as Jeff Buckley's version remains the most vital, however, Shrieve (who's a fan of the late Buckley) takes a solid crack just to show he's got the chops to be a contender. A series of impressive hooks to follow.
—Alex Green
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