Feature

Jukebox

(Photo: Mary Rozzi/Tag Team Media)

The Reminder
Feist
The hipster songbird of Toronto follows up 2004’s breakout Let It Die with a more angst- and inner-turmoil-influenced take on that album’s novel acoustic disco sound.

TINA: As a big fan of the sophisticated cocktail-cool of Feist’s last record, I was initially suspicious of the vulnerability she exhibits here. You don’t want to see the really smart, with-it girl drunk on warm beer, crying over some dumb guy. It’s a relief to find that even when faced with romantic disarray, she can still be cold-blooded (see “I’ll be the one who’ll break my heart / I’ll be the one to hold the gun”).
Rating: 9
Best Track: “I Feel It All”

FRED: We’ve got a soft spot in our house for female singer-songwriters with a pop sensibility. Names like Annie Lennox, Sinéad O’Connor, and Sophie Zelmani are all on our most-played list. Feist fits right into that mold with a lovely voice, wonderful songs, and varied arrangements, although the girls think she has a “whiny” voice.
Rating: 8
Best Track: “I Feel It All”

MELISSA: Occasional blips and beeps confirm my laptop’s classification of this album as electronica, but the sneaky thing keeps scaling the wall into pop, lounge, and even gospel. It’s surprisingly palatable thanks to Feist’s dynamically lo-fi voice, which gives the album a coherent personality it might otherwise have lost among the cross-genre drama.
Rating: 9
Best Track: “I Feel It All”