Label: Sub Pop

Release Date: Sept. 15, 2005

Rosie Thomas - If Songs Could Be Held
Matthew Ralph

Plenty of metaphors could be used to describe Rosie Thomas' music — seasons, fireplaces, sewing machines, etc. — but the title of the Seattle-based songwriter's third full-length, "If Songs Could Be Held", is perhaps more appropriate than any clever reviewer could ever muster.

Covering a wide range of topics from mortality to self esteem, Thomas gently asks profound Ecclesiastes type questions - "How do you make these moments last?" and "Who cares anyway? - and explores through personal experience and fictional narrative the beauty of life's most daunting challenges.

Augmented by a somber violin on "Guess It May," Thomas eloquently sings about romance. "I'm still learning what love is, everyday I wake up in your arms. I'm still trying to figure out how it works, how to set off all your alarms." Simple, yet so profound, Thomas' voice is backed by a sparse arrangement of piano, violin quiet percussion and distant guitar.
But all of the songs aren't just quiet melancholy tunes with a stripped down piano and vocal sound.

On "Pretty Dress," straight-forward percussion and orchestration blends with a strong piano and haunting background vocals. "They don't see you like I see you," Thomas sings.
The album's opener, "Since You've Been Around," is a conflicting mix of emotions set to a pretty acoustic backdrop. "I'm running, I'm hiding, I'm afraid of never finding, because I always feel lost in a crowd," Thomas sings.

As on past works, it's the words that carry Thomas' songs. Her maturity as a songwriter shines through once more in this collection of songs that each take on their own life and meaning. Surely, no matter where the listener is at, he or she should be able to find a context for this timeless themes.

It seems apparent that Thomas' music would appeal more to a female audience, but it's also clear that the gentleness and honesty of these songs would do plenty of male listeners good, if for nothing else but to contemplate the beauty of the human spirit, both in joy and sorrow.
In a time where many people nationwide are looking for answers and scarred from the tragedies of a mighty storm and unraveling travesty of human suffering, Thomas' words offer a much needed hug and a reminder that the words "you are not alone" are more than just cliche.

posted [09.06.05]

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