Jenny Owen Youngs - Transmitter Failure
Rating
RIYL
Beth OrtonCat Power
Maria Taylor
Nick Drake
Release Date
05/26/2009
Label
NettwerkTracklist
1. First Person2. Led To The Sea
3. Dissolve
4. Here Is A Heart
5. Clean Break
6. If I Didn’t Know
7. What Beats Within
8. Secrets
9. No More Words
10. Last Person
11. NIghty Night
12. Transmitter Failure
13. Star + Stop
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Change is something that hardly ever comes easy; a change of scenery; of location; of attitude; of style; of appearance. We as people generally tend to stick to what we are comfortable with because it is in this that we succeed. In change, there is more often than not the chance of failure. In failure, we find the harsh realities of disappointment. In failure we learn. In failure we grow. A leap of faith into the darkened unknown can never fully ensure success. In change, we find Jenny Owen Youngs and her sophomore Nettwerk release Transmitter Failure.
"I wanted to make something that would move people emotionally, but also move them physically,” Youngs says of her sophomore release. “I did not want to end up touring for another three years on a record that wouldn't offer people the opportunity to move. So Dan Romer (producer) and I set out to make something that was, quite simply, more fun to play live. In the process, my writing took turns I didn't expect."
Transmitter Failure finds Youngs blossoming into a more mature singer/songwriter. Each song is chock-full of an assortment of instruments that shape countless atmospheric tones, courtesy of the string section of the award winning Broadway musical Spring Awakening. Classical string symphonies interwoven into a typical pop/folk driven rhythm of acoustic guitars, quirky ukuleles, and lively bass lines makes for a world of difference. Splendid organs, booming horns, flutes, and glockenspiels make marvelous guest appearances while thriving on subtly. This is in comparison to 2007’s Batten The Hatches where Youngs’ musicianship was rather one dimensional and at times a bit awkward, but still enjoyable.
The album itself, audibly, is a rollercoaster ride in terms of pacing. Transmitter Failure does not allow for the listener to become distracted by their daily surroundings, as the delicately serene ballads are instantaneously followed with fleet-footed pop/rock melodies to leave the listener breathless. Songs like “Start + Stop”, “No More Words”, “What Beats Within”, and “Nighty Night” allow the listener time to swoon on Youngs’ charming, velvety vocals, while others like “Clean Break”, “Led To Sea”, and “Last Person” pull the listener back into the shuffle revitalized and more attentive than ever.
Through nearly forty-eight minutes, Youngs dissects in great detail the importance behind communication with two or more individuals – its utter success, its complete and total failure, and the ways in which it affects relationships. What sets this disc apart from its predecessor and others like it is the distinct heartfelt sincerity Youngs tends to pour into every track. Every song is an embrace from her sweet honey tinged vocals.
In a world of chance and opportunity, change should in essence be, at all times, approached with caution. But in a world of snap decision making and thinking only in terms of immediacy, contentment is a risk where hindsight can be a dreadful thing. But in the words of Mrs. Jenny Owen Youngs: “What's the worst thing that could happen? We find out that we don't quite fit. But on the flip side, we could be just right, and sure there's the chance that we'll both end up broken and split, but that's my kind of risk.”
In success we strive, we flourish. In success, we don’t look back. In success, we find Jenny Owen Youngs.
--Daniel Alcinii
Comments
Great album, I'm surprised no one said anything about this record.