Risa Hall - Soundtrack to My Life

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 21 / 2 / 2016

Label: Risa Hall
Format: Download

intro

As a taster for her new album due this summer, Manchester-based yet New York-born Risa Hall releases her new single which is just aching to be picked up for radio play

Manchester-based singer-songwriter Risa Hall made a pretty good impression with her ‘New York Nights’ EP and ‘Second Chance’ (originally titled ‘Glass Half…?) album. The New York born Hall was one of that rare breed who didn’t easily fit into any given genre. With Risa’s background in musicals, films and voiceovers, it was hardly surprising that when it came to creating her own album she was going to draw from her experiences in those various roles to produce music that couldn’t be easily labelled. Risa, of course, wasn’t the first to mix blues, pop and jazz but she did it with such style it was hard to resist. Then there was her distinctive, powerful voice; Risa Hall is one of those vocalists who, when she sings, you just have to listen. ‘Soundtrack to My Life’ is a single that’s pulled from Risa’s forthcoming album, ‘Love is Telepathic’, which is set for a summer release. Already picking up airplay, it’s only going to take a spin on the right BBC Radio Two programme to really catch on. Risa has certainly not lost any of the power in her vocals since we last heard from her, and, while ‘Soundtrack To My Life’ will remind many of Katie Melua, it’s more the style of song that Risa has chosen to release as a taster for the forthcoming album that will draw those comparisons rather than Risa’s vocals or songwriting. There’s a slight musical vibe to the song, something that Risa is no stranger to, but the song, which is self-penned, offers so much more than just another show song. This is classic songwriting of the type we hear so little of these days. It recalls the days when songs were meticulously crafted, and it has a swing about it that captures the golden age of female singers while still sounding completely contemporary. With her crystal clear vocals and the timeless arrangement Risa has created yet another little classic. ‘Soundtrack to My Life’ is one of those songs that could have been released anytime in the last five decades yet still sounds fresh and contemporary. It’s been too long since we heard anything new from Risa. In that period there has been an influx of simply brilliant female singer-songwriters but none, that have passed this way at least, who have even attempted to cover the same ground as Risa does here. There’s just one word that sums up ‘Soundtrack to My Life’, and that’s class. Risa has nothing to prove when it comes to songwriting or performing, grouping her in with all the other, admittedly excellent, current crop of singer-songwriters is unfair simply because none come instantly to mind who are covering the same ground as Risa. ‘Soundtrack to My Life’ is instantly appealing but it’s a song that, due to being cut from the same cloth as those classics from the heyday of the Brill Building era, doesn’t lose any of it’s charm even after countless plays. It’s timeless music, simple as that. It’s not often that a song as classy as this comes along and which is sung with such conviction by a singer who really is at the top of her game. Welcome back then, Risa Hall. If this single is any indication of the quality of the forthcoming album, we are in for a treat.

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