Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Roisin Murphy - mp3s from Ruby Blue (2005) - Night of the Dancing Flame and Ramalama


That girl is Roisin.

These tracks are from Ruby Blue, the debut solo album from Irish songstress Roisin Murphy, frontwoman of Moloko. The songs on Ruby Blue are all over the map - each song fuses elements of jazz, late 70's/early 80's soul, rock, and electronica, with varying emphasis on each between tracks. I'm not sold on the lyrics yet--phrases like "is it through memory's rose-tinted glass" and "fools, they rush in," though sung sincerely, make me wince a little.

The sometimes overreaching fusion and trite bits are easy for me to ignore for the brilliant moments, though, like Night of the Dancing Flame, which opens and closes with hot funky brass, and has hints of Stevie Wonder's Hotter Than July. The twin horns at the two and a half minute mark blend in beautifully with bells and wah-ing electronic pulses, then cede to the funky underlying rhythm. That's why I listen to music, folks.

Equally fun is the opening track, Leaving the City, a tense staccato electronic sonic adventure in which our heroine says she's leaving the city, but wants her lover to tell her to stay. Then there's the soulful dance jam, If We're In Love, in which she asserts, "If we're in love, we should make love," and Ramalama, which is a third industrial pulsing, a third jazz singer sassiness, and a third "George of the Jungle."

Roisin Murphy mp3s:
Leaving the City
Ramalama

7 comments:

John said...

Isn't anyone going to criticize me for the "all over the map" cliche here?

Anonymous said...

thank you for posting those roisin songs!!! i can't wait for the CD to come out and i only have vinyl to tide me over. this is much better!!! i actually like her lyrics this time around and grant her forgiveness (and you as well) for being trite. :)

John said...

you're welcome! I have more if you need it. Just let me know.

Anonymous said...

hello there :) i would love them ALL! i have all the records and just cannot wait until the album is REALLY out. :) :) :) I would be VERY grateful!!!!

John said...

Send me an email addy to canowine@yahoo.com and I'll send you a link for the rest.

Anonymous said...

thanks for the link!!! the cd sounds great, except there was something was up with the "sinking feeling" mp3 and so i didn't put it on the cd (it's ok, i will wait for the real album). other than that, it's perfect!!!

Anonymous said...

nice review - i agree with you 100%

what did you think of her earlier stuff?
and do you think this is a reflection of her leaving mark?
and don't you agree that mark's engineering and mixing skills far surpass herbert's?