Kennedy Green - Kennedy Green

by Lisa Torem

published: 26 / 6 / 2010

Label: Rocket Girl
Format: CD

Eclectic debut album from fantastic teenage girl duo Kennedy Green, all proceeds from which will go to charity and who originally formed tto pay tribute to a ten year old classmate who died from cancer

Review

Laura Green, 16, and Hannah Shayle-Kennedy, 18, AKA Kennedy Green have joined forces to create an exciting album by the same name. Green witnessed an outpouring of compassion when, in 2004, the song ‘Rocket Girl’ (Wire Daisies) was posted on You Tube to raise money for charity and to honour her ten year-old friend Declan Heath. After tens of thousands of people downloaded the video, to assist in the project, Kennedy Green continued creating new songs on behalf of their musical partnership. Green and Kennedy are happy to say that all proceeds will go to the CLIC Sargent children’s cancer fund. The album is eclectic. ‘Castles on Islands’ has a slight, poppy Abba feel, but doesn’t represent the album as a whole.‘Don’t Waste My Time’ shows a phenomenal energy and sass: “Clutching through a straw/You’re falling through the floor/Don’t call me/Don’t waste my time” sums up the attitude. The warmest vocals occur in 'Andromeda' which reminds me of the best and earlier Janis Ian folk songs. This one, like ‘At Seventeen’, is also a samba with a careening, stellar melody and the vocals are pure and beautiful. “You with the blank stare/The monsters coming after you” is one phrase which occurs after some references to boring school work. “Take me where life is easier” we are also asked. The piano-based ‘Cocopah’ intimates, “There’s no words so rich they say what I’m meaning” and the rest of the storyline struggles with that very concept. ‘Teenage Devil’ in contrast has the feel of Avril Lavigne's 'Skater Boy'. ‘Allergic’ takes some chromatic chances; though ‘Rocking Horse’ remains commercial. ‘Blue Eyes, Red Wine’swings and allows the vocals to soar and rhythm to build with sweet talk like this - “Seal a deal with a gentle kiss/I know you’re helpless when I’m pulling a string.” ‘Red Sky’ is another simply gorgeous vocal treat, though the lyrics are gothic: “Running to the blood sea/Running to the filthy stream.” The last track is ‘Rocket Girl.’ A You Tube video shows the girls, sitting back to back, at first, looking youthful and exuberant, in front of an austere beach. Soon, the energetic tune is sung in tandem by tots and other teens; culminating in a sort of ‘We Are the World’ love chant. But, there are some sombre moments that take place, too, to remind the viewer about the thought behind the ‘Rocket Girl’ objective. Essentially, Kennedy Green is an excellent tour de force for two outstanding vocalists who have a lot to say and whose hearts match their artistic vision. Although the album is eclectic and I’m not entirely sure of where they will land, genre-wise, this is a fantastic start.

Track Listing:-

1 Castles On Islands
2 Don't Waste My Time
3 Andromeda
4 Soap Girl
5 Allergic
6 Blue Eyes, Red Wine
7 Rocking Horse
8 Cocopah
9 Teenage Devil
10 Zooming
11 Red Sky
12 Dirona
13 Rocket Girl