Kathy Muir - Far From Entirely

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Kathy Muir - Far FromEntirely
2012, Kathy MuirKathy Muir grew up in Edinburgh, Scotland, and like so manyother singers cut her teeth on first hymns, and later folk music from herchurch.  Over time she has garneredsignificant jazz and blues influences. These days she writes on the edge of acoustic folk and rock, with aquiet energy that runs throughout her songs. Those jazz, blues, and occasionally even country influences breakthrough at unexpected times however, meaning you never really know what KathyMuir might do next.  Thisunpredictability is highly evident on Muir’s debut album, Far From Entirely.

Muir opens up with the restrained and polished country/pop of Jezebel. Thissong feels like it should have more weight than it does. Muir's voice is solid,as she stays within a compact, comfortable range. "Heaven In YourEyes" is a low key, mid- tempo song of love and longing. Intense emotionis conveyed in a diffuse and non-committal arrangement without any realspark.  There's a bit more life to"Sweet And Easy" in spite of the mellow arrangement. Muir is fullyengaged here, singing with a quiet passion of the discoveries of new love.Things get a bit funky on "Come Undone", with Muir swinging her waythrough another love song. The slinky feel is a wake up of sorts, and one ofthe better musical moments encountered here.

"One Step Away" has a melody that's instantly familiar, but becomes avictim of its own low energy. Things pick up significantly on "Ties OfLove", which has a quietly vibrant chorus and a sense o urgency you can'tshake. "Fairytale Lies" has the same urgent energy, as Muir swearsoff fairy tales as a relationship archetype in a compact country rocker.  Synth rock is the prime directive on"You Surround Me", a pyramidal musical structure based on one simplepiano line. Muir builds the sounds through layers, but true crescendo anddecrescendo would make this more vital. Muir stumbles through the meanderinglandscape of "The Piano Plays A Melody". Listeners may feel lostamidst the nearly free- form rhyme structure ad disjointed lyrical constructsused here. Muir closes on a positive note with "Dream Of The Night",a passionate and swarthy rocker that moves with its own inner life.

Kathy Muir lives through some musical highs and lows on Far From Entirely. In her best moments she engages listeners with asolid, comfortable voice and an easy going vocal style. The songwriting isgenerally well thought out and executed, and any sins noted above areforgivable in the context of the album as a whole. All in all, consider Far From Entirely to be a very cordialintroduction to Kathy Muir.Rating: 3 Stars(Out of 5)Learn more at www.kathymuir.com.