This six-track EP was actually released a few months back, but I had decided not to review it as there is only so much music I can cope with, but after I saw Danica on the tour which went with this, I knew I was going to have to backtrack and get it after all. She is a wonderfully exciting young talent who is already being recognised as such, was chosen to support Elton John (Bryant supported the icon on his ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour) and has been mentored by none other than Bic Runga (music royalty in Aotearoa). Vocally she is quite similar to Stevie Nicks, and while her style is alt-pop that includes rock elements at times when it suits, the result being six songs which are very different indeed to each other. I previously reviewed one of these, the single “Crush”, which I really enjoyed with the sweetness of the melody at total odds with the lyrics, “You’re the type of man I’d only like to crush”, which just goes to show one must pay close attention to what this young lady is saying.
She can sing clearly and sweetly when she wants to, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, and opener “Pipedream” contains plenty of sweetness and life while also containing some psychedelic moments in an arrangement which seems quite sparse at times yet there is actually a lot going on. Producer Jonny Avery gets a co-write credit on every song, so he obviously had a large impact on the material, yet he has ensured Danica gets to show her diverse styles throughout. Highlight is probably “Tunnel of Love”, which has a rock support and some nice vocal gymnastics and pop elements which one could easily imagine from the likes of P!nk or Avril Lavigne, and is a load of fun.
For anyone interested in well-crafted songs with strong vocals and hooks then this is well worthy of further investigation.
Rating: 8/10
