Bubblegum Sweetness

Though Leigh Nash has been in the music business 15 years, she still manages to convey an innocence that belies her longevity. Her distinctive, angelic voice makes her easily recognizable as the former front-woman of Sixpence None the Richer. Blue on Blue, her pop-influenced solo release, is a little more soulful than her previous work; however, the mature tracks don’t negate the slightly syrupy ones.Her angelic voice and mature lyrics make for an interesting combination on songs like the sophisticated “Along the Wall” and the mature “Nervous in the Light of Dawn.” The former, with its solitary piano and lilting vocals, is a gracefully orchestrated love song about a broken relationship. Its lyrics aren’t naïve: “If you say you love me, I’ll say, ‘Sure, if you say so’/Whatever you tell me, I won’t believe you.” The latter is a piano-driven ballad with woodwinds that give it a new age feel. The subject matter is more adult-oriented: “And I wished for affection/And I wished for calm/As I lay there/nervous in the light of dawn.”

There are lots of optimistic love songs like “Ocean Size Love” and “Never Finish” that are sweet and charming, but a few, like “My Idea of Heaven,” come out simplistic and sugary with lyrics such as, “In heaven, love lasts forever…This is my idea of heaven, lying here with you.”

Nash gets points for using a glockenspiel, but other than her unique vocals, there is not much that makes Blue on Blue. especially different and memorable. The album shows that she is capable of creating lovely, sophisticated tracks, but they are couched within songs that are a little more wine cooler than champagne.