Search - Rose Polenzani :: Dragersville

A Pipeline to the Marvellous

Chris Yeager | Boston, MA United States | 12/24/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I once heard a lecturer describe the painter Joan Miro as having "a pipeline to the marvellous." That's the only way I can describe Polenzani's songwriting. Where this young woman gets these lyrics is beyond me, but I've heard her sing, she opens her mouth, and out they come. She's in a trance, you're in a trance, the room's in a trance. If you're interested in songwriting with strong poetic content, this CD is for you. Polenzani's been adopted by the Indigo-Girls-women's-folk mafia, but the power of her gift puts her far ahead of that often-wearisome leauge. I sometimes wonder if they know how good she is. I sometimes wonder if Rose herself knows how good she is.Dragersville might be hard to get these days. It's her first CD, made of the best stuff from her notebook, all acoustic. She's using a band recently, and fortunately she does that well, but it's with the solo acoustc stuff that she casts her best spells... Dragersville will restore your faith in the singer-songwriters art form..."

I dare you.

bz | sleepy west of the woody east | 03/19/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From the very first line of the opening track, "Who am I to sing a love song?" Rose Polenzani's music tugs unmercifully at the heartstrings of even the most consummate listener. Masked in homespun, four-track timidity, her voice fools you into thinking this is the start of some sleepy late-night ride. If only. Characters and stories from an unfettered past are red-stitched through layers of coy profundity and universal human emotion that leave the listener far from slumber by journey's end. Rose Polenzani's lyrics are beyond poetic - they're ingenius, intuitive, confrontational, confessional, transcendent.. and the melodies: at once lilting, gorgeous, playful, dark, somber, and rocking. Marriage of the two elements lends itself to a sum immeasurably greater than the whole of its parts. Nevermind "heir to Nick Drake" or "cross between Joan of Arc and Leonard Cohen" - Rose is an unparalleled ORIGINAL, and this album is a MUST HAVE for anyone with an ear (er, heart) for quality songwriting and brilliant masterpieces. Her live performances are spellbinding and unreal, as are her two follow-up albums after this exquisite debut, but "Dragersville" is, and will always be, a five-star stronghold on my list of ultimate Top Tens. The best part of listening to this album is resting assured in the confidence that one can only expect to hear more/better musings from Rose Polenzani in the years to come."