Ethereal Originality

It could be said that a common preconception towards Vanessa Carlton is that she’s a “one hit wonder.” Mention “A Thousand Miles”, the quintessential pre-teen karaoke song, and anyone who turned on the radio in 2001 or has seen White Chicks will surely squeal at the first hint of the signature piano riff, yet would scratch their heads if further discussion was prompted regarding Carlton’s discography.

Consequently, Liberman is Carlton’s firm and unwavering attempt at proving the general consensus wrong. It’s a mature and adroit record, a steadfast comeback. Those who considered Carlton just another striving pop artist who simply hit the jackpot of movie soundtrack inclusion will surely be vehemently proved wrong. Liberman is ethereal and haunting. The opening piano melody featured on Blue Pool, her most recent EP, is spine-tingling, and Carlton’s pitch perfect vocals are transcendental.

Liberman includes a couple tracks from Blue Pool, which was an intelligent move on Carlton’s part. Blue Pool was wonderfully original, a lush and trippy soundscape in which one was transported down a rabbit hole for fifteen minutes. The opening track of Liberman, “Take It Easy” (also featured on Blue Pool), is refreshingly unique and divergent from much of Carlton’s previous discography. It can only be described as hypnotic, a good song to simply close one’s eyes, lean back and relax to. Nearly all of the lyricism on Liberman is strictly metaphorical, her songs about love rarely straightforward and instead highly up to interpretation, such as “House of Seven Swords,” in which she sings about a certain individual protecting themselves with their “house of seven swords.” Several of the other tracks follow this vague pattern.

As far as pop records go, Liberman reaches the absolute threshold of originality and breaks right through it. The fact that it’s not clean cut and simple furthers its status beyond the type of record your basic, everyday solo pop artist may produce. Liberman is complicated, dreamy, and haunting. And it’s a breath of fresh air.