 After a difficult hour with this album, the listener is left with a furrowed brow and some lingering questions.
What was that?
Although these four Bostonian ladies also have a cassette available for sale, this album was essentially their first release. And it shows. In terms of the album itself, there is an odd flow in the track list, a very common beginner mistake. In terms of the sound, their voices occasionally crack, they are too often quite pitchy, and there is a general lack of breath support all around.
Why is this album called “The Royal Whee”?
Perhaps the CD was supposed to be fun. However, instead of being fun, the album is just repetitive, and somewhat boring. The arrangements are uninspiring. Each track sounds like something is missing. Despite the title, the album is not very fun.
And with a name like “Talk to the Hand,” one would think that these four singers would deliver an attitude-packed collection of songs. However, the songs yield little attitude and little else. The album just isn’t very good.
What is missing from this album?
The first thing the listener thinks is, “Maybe they need more voices.” Maybe not: four voices works well for The Nylons, the Bobs, the Blenders, Cadence, the Persuasions, moosebutter, and of course a zillion barbershop quartets (including the aptly named “Four Voices”). So if it’s not lack of voices, what it is it?
For starters, the solos are amateur, leaving the listener wanting. Although the solos are often in key, they are rarely well-supported, and rarely sincere. And like too many amateur soloists, these ladies have failed to make the song their own. They merely imitate the song’s original soloist. Unfortunately, what works for The Carpenters or Paula Cole doesn’t necessarily work for everyone.
Next, the album is missing the exciting energy of modern recorded music. Granted, not everyone loves mounds of effects, but even groups that prefer an organic sound usually choose older songs, or at least not Christina Aguilera. And “natural” sounding groups often spend time putting together more creative arrangements, making more efficient use of all four voices. The ladies also use a really odd vocal percussion, which adds to the listener’s confusion. It sounds like these ladies heard that someone, somewhere was doing vocal percussion, and so they tried to guess how it should sound.
Finally, and most glaringly, the arrangements are weak. The best way to describe the sound on the album is that the ladies are wearing headphones and singing along, but no one else can hear anything but them. The result is a bland series of ooo’s and daa daa’s that that never really capture the essence of any one style, and never do justice to any of the songs. It’s the a cappella equivalent of air guitar.
So is there anything redeeming about this album?
It’s not true that the entire album is a complete flop. The ladies of Talk To The Hand chose an excellent studio with some great mics, which resulted in a physically clean sound. The “true” a cappella fans out there would really appreciate the complete lack of effects (or even EQ) on this album. The other good thing about the album is the solid choice of familiar songs:
Come On Over Baby - Christina Aguilera
Love is a Battlefield - Pat Benatar
Our Lips Are Sealed - The Go-Gos
Rock the Boat - Hughes Corporation
Thorn in My Side - Eurythmics
Cruel To Be Kind - Nick Lowe
Fall On Me - R.E.M.
Got To Get You Into My Life - The Beatles
Cherish - Madonna
No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) - Barbra Streisand / Donna Summer
I Touch Myself - Divinyls
Separate Ways - Journey
There's a Kind of Hush - The Carpenters
I'd Run Away - The Jayhawks
Little Goodbyes - Shedaisy
I Am So Ordinary - Paula Cole
Everything You Want - Vertical Horizon
I Think I'm Paranoid - Garbage
Mother, Mother - Tracy Bonham
It's Raining Men - The Weather Girls
The problem is that if you like any of the original versions of these tunes, you may not be too fond of Talk To The Hand’s interpretation of them. The main reason is that of these twenty tracks, only two don’t sound sparse: “Come On Over Baby” and “Got To Get You Into My Life.” For this ensemble, these are the two strongest tracks, but they are just not enough to save the album.
The other really positive thing about this group is that they spent a lot of time and/or money on their website and their overall look. The album art is cute and fun, for sure. It’s just too bad they didn’t spend as much time on their arrangements. Perhaps for the next album, Talk To The Hand will spend a bit more time in the studio, both recording and mixing. They don’t necessarily need heavy metal distortion, but at a little reverb would be nice.
The biggest redeeming surprise about the album is the group’s low alto. It’s not clear from the liner notes who their lowest singer is, but she can really sing strong down in the tenor range. It’s unfortunate that the higher singers don’t sing with as much enthusiasm and diaphragm support as she does.
So should anyone buy this CD?
Yes. If you are a friend or relative of someone in the group, this CD will probably be a fun treasure in your collection. This is a quintessential yearbook album. These four ladies will use this album to treasure their time together.
Other than that, most fans at the national level should just stay away.
http://talk2thehand.com
Dave Brown is a graduate of BYU, where he sang with Vocal Point, and co-founded and directed Noteworthy. When he doesn't have his nose buried in his UVa Law books, he sings and records with his wife in their home studio, and directs the local church choir.
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