CD Review – Let It Go – Lacey Brown

13 years ago Liv Carter 1

Let It Go – Lacey Brown (LEB Records – 2011)

Making her debut with a 5-track EP, Lacey Brown is off to a strong start.

With a confidence that belies her young age, Brown strides through these songs, all of which she (at least) co-wrote, which are full of quirks and twists, making it one of the most pleasant surprises this year.

Right from the old-vinyl-album-effect at the start of opening track ‘Let It Go’, the listener is transported to Lacey’s world where vulnerability is a strength and honesty is the highest virtue.

Though there are only a handful of songs here, Brown manages to play with a wide variety of sounds. The folksy ‘Okay’ is driven forward by hand claps while the title track rests on dark piano tones.

The finest feature of Let It Go is the high quality of the writing. Two tracks really stand out in this regard, and would probably do so on a full-length album as well. The sharp observations in ‘Day to Day’ underscore a chorus with the plea: Give me fire, give me rain/Give me passion, give me pain/Give me a life that’s worth living, day to day. ‘Love Is a War,’ with its muddled bluegrass sound, is a masterfully told story-song which starts out menacingly: The first time I saw your face/it was printed on a Wanted page.

The EP closes with ‘Boy,’ a borderline throw-back song, on which the boy is reassured that frustrations from previous relationships will no longer be a problem. The message is delivered with such devastating charm that I cannot imagine him resisting for long.

‘Unique’ is a too-often-used term to describe any good material which is a little left of center. But with Let It Go, Lacey Brown announces she is worthy of this descriptor. An unconventional voice, accomplished songwriting, and boundless creativity combine felicitously and make Let It Go an impressive calling card for hopefully many albums to come.

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Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

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