Friday, November 18, 2011
Tonight Adron, Organismo
Posted by Chad Radford @ChadRad on Fri, Nov 18, 2011 at 2:36 PM
The opening number of Adron’s long-awaited second full-length, Organismo, “Paradise Island Tropical Vacation” sets a familiar tone for the 11-song odyssey she’s crafted over the last three years. The song carries the unmistakable sound of Adron — brimming with faux Brazilian charm and her naturally whimsical ways. But unlike her 2008 self-titled CD for New Street Records, or her ’09 follow up EP, Burdwurld, any semblance of her once clearly defined Beck worship has given way to the efforts of a focused, meticulous songwriter who knows exactly what she’s capable of doing. With her previous recordings, Adron bore the telltale marks of a girl who was just stoked to be playing a guitar, writing fun and witty songs, and getting a reaction.
She’s all grown up now and what has come along with that is a sense of depth, intricacy, mystery and romance. “Paradise Island Tropical Vacation” is a refresher that brushes the synapses with Adron’s welcoming tones. This is the same, cooing, chirping voice that swayed audiences in both Atlanta and for a brief time New York City, with songs like "Airplanes," "Walking Home," "Blanket Fort" and "Never Leave My Room Again.” As Organismo unfolds, the evolved melodies and layered arrangements of “Sun Behind The Sun” and “Pyramid” balance catchy, calming pop flourishes and gently billowing clouds of notes. While there’s still an effortless sense of fun here, there’s also a subtle resignation of her position as a quirky, hippie cooer while embracing the art of more complex songwriting, along with finding confidence in her own unique voice.
"Jorgonian of the Midnight Sun" is perhaps the dreamiest cut here, culminating in a stripped-down and moon-lit ballad rich with reverb that accentuates just how skillfully producer Martin Kearns wove each of the album’s parts together. In addition to their undeniable melodic appeal, the strings, tones, percussion, and most of all Adron’s voice open up to reveal all sorts of unanticipated nuances. You can hear the wood, the metal and the nylon strings of the instruments in the room reflected in her voice as well. She also vacillates between singing in English, French and Portuguese, delivering her songs with such warmth and ease that literal meaning becomes secondary.
What is perhaps the album’s strongest quality is that there is no real filler here. Each of the album’s 11 songs instinctively flow into one-another, fluttering on for as long as they need to — slightly beyond pop’s three-minute golden mean — and always switching gears with plenty of room to keep things interesting.
The dangers of wielding such an evolved sense of pretty and exotic songwriting shows itself when songs like “Heaven-Scented Season Tree” and “Infinite & Tenderlovin,” veer dangerously close to the realms of lite-contemporary adult pop white wash. She skirts the edge, but never goes overboard, thus creating a mellow tension and putting a fine finish on a superb second album.
"Sun Behind the Sun"
"Pyramids"
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