Lovely, vivid, intelligent, underrated
pango | Bronx NYC | 03/06/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'll make a (pointless) prediction--one day, many years from now, this record will be considered one of the highlights of a rather grim decade in music. It's lovely, ominous, reassuring, adventurous, rapturous, poignant. Williams' taste in covers is exemplary and adventurous--her version of "Ballad of Easy Rider" and especially Lee Hazelwood's "Easy and Me" makes me cry sometimes. She turns Pavement's "Spit on a Stranger" into the lullaby it was always meant to be, Ivor Cutler's "Beautiful Cosmos" into a tiny, shining gemstone, Big Star's "Thirteen" into a little hymn, Kurt Cobain's "All Apologies" into a bad dream. It's an exquisite record; it's not "groundbreaking," it's not "influential"--it's just beautiful, and I hope one day more people appreciate it."
Relations by Kathryn Williams
Pat Buchan | Saddleworth, England | 01/20/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I'm not a fan of cover versions but I'd read a newspaper review of Kathryn's CD and wanted to hear her version of The Ballad of Easy Rider. I was hooked long before that track though; in fact I was hooked 5 bars into the first one. Her voice is extraordinary (a bit childlike, though I'm sure she'd hate me for saying that) and the backing vocals and accompaniment are perfect. The songs range from Lou Reed (Candy Says) to Ivor Cutler (Beautiful Cosmos) and each track is my favourite at the time of playing - until the next song comes along. The best money I've ever spent. Pat B"
Solid, Professional Acoustic Folk-Rock
KC | Northern CA | 05/13/2006
(3 out of 5 stars)
"A solid, professional effort. She offers appropriate twee folk-rock vocals to a solid collection of songs. However, there's nothing that stands out in particular - her voice is not very distinctive - neither warm nor harsh. Her interpretations are all fine but nothing unexpected, new or interesting - all pleasant and nice. So, as long as your expectations aren't too high - it's a fine, solid and consistent sounding effort."
