Paula Kelley - Nothing Everything

  by John Clarkson

published: 8 / 5 / 2002

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Review

Once described as "the queen of baroque pop", Paula Kelley first drew public attention in the early 90's as a member of the shoegazing group, the Drop Nineteens, and appeared playing guitar and on occasional vocals on that band's 1992 debut album 'Delaware'. In the time since then Kelley's music has developed an increasing sixties bent, and both the Boston based singer's next bands, Hot Rod and Boy Wonder, with whom she recorded an album each, combined indie guitar sounds with Brian Wilson, Burt Bacharach and early Bee Gees influenced arrangements and harmonies. 'Nothing/Everything', Kelley's debut album as a solo artist, is her purest excursion into sixties territory yet. The distortive and grunge effects that were evident on 'Speed ! Danger ! Death !' and 'Wonderwear', her albums with Hot Rod and Boy Wonder respectively, have now completely vanished, and the sophisticated vocal arrangements and meticulous harmonies that have been expanded upon to take their place are tighter and more acute. In an era in which it seems that the market is drearily overflowing with other similarly-influenced albums , Kelley's album, far from being simply another nostalgic romp, however, stands out far apart from others in the crowd by having a surprisingly contemporary feel. Other bands, experimenting in the same format, have often tended to remain rooted as close to their source as possible, recording their albums on vintage gear. More concerned with songwriting, however, than simply capturing the sound of an age, Kelley, who has also produced 'Nothing/Everything, has given it a fresh focus by recording it entirely on modern built equipment, that includes, as well as guitars and drums, pianos, a Moog, keyboards and strings. Her lyrics have a similar contemporaneous,being written with a wry twenty first century honesty Both 'Two Possible Answers (The Road)' and 'Everything' serve as self-therapy, looking unflinchingly at her own sporadic self-disillusion and doubt. "Everything I wanted seemed invisible to me" she sings mournfully on the latter. "Everything I wanted was away getting by/Everything I wanted I was afraid to try." 'Slug' tells of a relationship on the slide. "You're talking so much crap that your voice is rough" she sings about a boyfriend who has let her down with the sort of direct earthiness that would have got the song an immediate blanket radio ban if it really had been released in the sixties. 'Girl of the Day' meanwhile finds Kelley examining her own musical development and heritage. "I know Barry Gibb was wrong" she says simply about her hero, expressing, with a complete absence of nostalgia, her disappointment and embarrassment with his post seventies career. " 'Night Fever' gives me headaches. " Five of the twelve songs that appear on 'Nothing/Everything' came out on a limited-to-200 copies edition CD 'A Bit of Everything' from a couple of years ago. While there is not perhaps quite enough material for the most die-hard of Kelley fans, this minor quibble aside, 'Nothing/Everything is by all other accounts an acute, fine offering. It puts new life and energy into what is an often over-forced format

Track Listing:-

1 Two possible Answers
2 Everything
3 You Gonna Make It
4 Nothing
5 All Request Hour
6 For Someone
7 Slug
8 Lucie
9 Girl of The Way
10 The Flight Under
11 Ordinary Mind
12 Showdown