Album Review: Doe Paoro ‘Slow to Love’
I love surprises. Particularly pleasant surprises. I enjoy discovering an artist that, on the surface, appears a direct contradiction to my typical musical tastes, but somehow manages to earn my affection nonetheless. Such was the case with Brooklyn’s Doe Paoro, who released her debut LP Slow to Love last week.
My ears left the female R&B scene behind sometime after TLC and long before Nicki Minaj. That’s not to say that I am deaf to the genre’s bright spots. I appreciate a strong voice as much as the next listener. However, so much of what has found my ears in the last decade felt machine made, pre-packaged and thoughtless. As a result, I largely tuned out.
Enter Doe Paoro. Her debut release is accessible and radio-ready without reverting to cliché, formulaic banality. Paoro’s voice is left to dance in front of a stark, minimalist backdrop. The album’s sparse production brings the singer’s strengths to the forefront, allowing her emotions to shine rather than get lost in the shuffle.
Stereogum was apt to cite Erykah Badu as a prominent influence on the album’s debut single “Born Whole” in their Band to Watch post last week. The track certainly bares more resemblance to Badu than other prominent 90s R&B vixens. On “I’ll Go Blind” Paoro strides closer to the masculine end of the spectrum, calling to mind Musiq Soulchild or Maxwell’s best work. Listen below.
This isn’t to say that Slow to Love is a flawless home run. “Trying to Impress” and “Body Games” toe the line of predictable, boy-crazy pop music. But the ablum’s strengths outweigh its weaknesses by a long shot. A refusal to pigeonhole Paoro’s talent has resulted in a release that could appeal to a broad cross-section of listeners, much in the way that Lykke Li was able to accomplish last year.
I will be interested to see how this release fares in 2012. At its best, Slow to Love can be gorgeous, haunting and danceable. The question will be whether Doe Paoro’s vision is cohesive enough to become a release that the masses will latch to. Name your price for a digital download via Bandcamp. Watch the video for “Born Whole” below.
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Written by Rob Peoni
Video: Parakeet “Tomorrow”
U.K. export Yuck proved to be one of 2011’s breakout stars. Critics gushed over their self-titled release. Their signature fuzz garnered praise from seemingly every corner of the indie blogosphere. Rather than make an immediate and likely lucrative return to the studio, Yuck’s members appear content to allow their minds to drift for a bit at the start of 2012. We have featured lead singer Daniel Blumberg’s side project Oupa a couple of times (SEE: “It’s Rough” and “Backwords“). This time around, we find the band’s bassist, indie vixen Mariko Doi, stepping out with her own side project Parakeet. Yesterday, the band dropped a video for their debut single, “Tomorrow.” The results can be found below. Parakeet is pressing a limited edition 7″ vinyl featuring “Tomorrow” and another track entitled “Paper, Scissors, Stone.” Those interested in that sort of thing had better act fast, as only 500 copies will be issued. Grab yours HERE.
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Written by Rob Peoni
Live Video: Alabama Shakes Visit KEXP (Full Performance)
The Alabama Shakes are no stranger to getting love from us here at Thought on Tracks, and that’s probably not going to stop anytime soon because, well, they are really fucking good. Below you can catch a 4-song performance of the Shakes taking over the KEXP studios in Seattle that concludes with their latest single “Hold On”.
The tracklist:
- Rise to the Sun
- Hang Loose
- I Found You
- Hold On
Don’t forget that the band’s debut album entitled Boys & Girls drops on April 9th. You can pre-order on iTunes today, or wait and pick up the vinyl at your local record at the beginning of next month.
Connect with Alabama Shakes via Facebook | Twitter
Written by Greg Dahman
Thought on Tracks 