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| Jain Wells - To Be Real |
Jain Wells – To Be Real (Choiceless Awareness Records)
Release Date: 26th November 2012
If I told you that Jain Wells was a Canadian Psychologist
who cited Coldplay and Dido as two of her big influences I would be telling the
truth but I would also be describing potentially the blandest person on the
face of the planet. The trouble is, however ‘beige’ Ms Wells might be as a
person, the songs she creates are far from mediocre. ‘To Be Real’ is the
debut album by the London based singer-songwriter and it beautifully showcases
her hauntingly wistful yet powerful voice through 12 finely crafted songs. Album
opener and first single ‘The Colours Of My Heart’ is an uplifting and strangely
reassuring song with a thundering horse gallop of a rhythm pushing forward the
whimsical melody. There is the same ethereal quality that you would expect from
Florence or Kate Bush running through this music but something feels unresolved
and uneasy. ‘Out of Time’ is a child-like tune that would beautifully
soundtrack a small girl discovering a secret fairy colony at the bottom of the
garden and getting caught up in a fantastical world of magical delights. In
fact, every song on this album has an innocence running through the music
regardless of the lyrical content. ‘Being and Time’ is a fine example of this
as the positively inspirational tune belies the slightly cryptic lyrical
content that hints at struggle and heartbreak.
Wells
has the ability to invoke a number of talented female songwriters and on ‘Holiday’
she takes on the forlorn resignation of Tori Amos superbly. ‘Out Of The Fog’
sees the Canadian sail fairly close to Shania Twain’s poppier territories but
admittedly with more bite and snarl in the chorus. However, on ‘Look in the
Mirror’ the mood turns to more sassy, savvy pop that you could expect Girls
Aloud or the next X-Factor winners singing with all the sophistication of a 13
year old girl spending her Saturday afternoon browsing in Primark and giggling
at boys. And herein lies my one problem with this album – Jain Wells has
created some excellent songs but I don’t get the feeling that she’s performing
them with any great passion or urgency. It would seem ideal in many ways that
some publishing company pick this album and split the album out amongst the
next wave of semi-capable singers who couldn’t write a melody if the future of
mankind depended on it. There is room on almost every song for the performance
to be turned up an extra notch, for the passion to be increased and for the
restraints to be cut away from Jain Wells. Of course, to most musicians, suggesting
that you give away your songs for the mere reward of cash is nothing short of sacrilege
so I won’t go down that road. What I would do though, is suggest that any
budding singers out there who want to add the ‘-songwriter’ bit to their title
should get hold of a copy of this album and study it hard. And if you’re a
great singer then why not team up with Jain because, let’s face it, we haven’t
really had a great Pop duo since Alisha’s Attic – that Daphne and Celeste were
a real let down. Jain Wells is a talent, there’s no denying that, but like a
footballer being played in the wrong position, I’m not entirely convinced that
she’s getting the most out of her talent just yet. Maybe try the left wing for
a while, Jain.
More Information: http://jainwells.com/