Corinne Bailey Rae

Week 33: Beabadoobee- This is How Tomorrow Moves

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If you’re curious about her name, it’s a tribute to scatting, a technique deeply rooted in jazz. As a Filipino Londoner, she’s a bit of a mystery (to me at least.), and I had to do some digging to learn more about her. This is her third album, and it’s been produced by the legendary Rick Rubin at Shangri-La, Malibu. 

Her real name is Beatrice Laus, and her breakthrough came with a song named ‘Coffee’, which she wrote when she was living with her parents at 17. Of course, seven years after that hit (I’ve never heard it), the singer-songwriter/guitarist has her own place. She also had a track go viral via TikTok. It was about crushing on Pavement’s frontman Stephen Malkmus, which isn’t only a strange crush but also made her go viral when most of those using TIkTok are too young to know the band, let alone its frontman. 

Her second album, “Beatopia”, released in 2022, is a far cry from her debut in 2020 “, Fake it Flowers”. Her debut was more overdriven guitars, which is quite popular among pop-punk and was once utilised by bands like Green Day when they were fresh on the scene. You could add Oasis to that because the first albums used a lot of overdrive on their guitars to give it that attitude. The follow-up was more downtempo with the music we associate with artists like Norah Jones, Corinne Bailey Rae and Gracie Abrams. Since being one of the support acts on Taylor Swift’s “Eras” tour, her fame has skyrocketed to a level she never expected. Anyone on the fringes who has supported Taylor so far on the tour has seen their stock rise to incredible levels. I’ve noticed this is the third fringe support act with a number-one record.

Bea’s vocal ability increased on this album, and she discussed how she is learning to mature as an artist while being under the microscope over catchy hooks and rocking out over dry lyrics.

’Ever Seen’ was inspired by how someone complimented her eyes and how that gave her an ego boost. ‘Real Man’ discusses how an old boyfriend had failed her.

On songs like ‘A Cruel Affair’ and ’Tie My Shoes’, she blends reality and fantasy in discussing her fears of being an adult, a theme that continues from her previous album, which was named after a fantasy world she created. The blend continues on this record, making it a sequel of sorts, but the characters within the stories have evolved, and their issues become more intense, adding a layer of intrigue to the album. ’Take a Bite’ is the opener, starting with a rock-out bang. It is about gaining knowledge after a relationship has ended and finding the answers as to why the initial chemistry didn’t last.

‘One Time’ is about taking revenge, and then we have her hurting in ‘Girl Song’, so there are several sides to her and her character’s personalities. Leading on from ‘Girl Song, ’ the song focuses heavily on her self-loathing, especially on her appearance.

On ‘California’, she talks about life on the road and how it is affecting her being away for long periods from her lover. This is expressed further in ‘Coming Home’, where she longs to return to her regular life and enjoy the simple things.

Rick successfully balanced Bea’s conflicted emotions in the overall production, a feat missing from her self-produced previous albums. Rick’s knack for producing what the artist has expressed within their lyrics is evident, particularly when you look at artists like Eminem. But it’s not just Eminem-Rick has worked with countless other artists across a whole range of genres, demonstrating his versatility.

As the album was recorded in California, why wouldn’t Red Hot Chili Peppers inspire her? That is evident on ‘Beaches’, another track to rock out to. As mentioned, Bea likes a lot of overdrive on her guitars, but Rick has found a balance on this album. There is even the odd piano ballad.

We have a mixture of piano ballads like ‘Girl Song’, where we can see her vulnerabilities, then the rock-out guitars on ‘Everything I Want’, the attitude and the self-confidence on ’Take a Bite’, and then there is even bossa nova featured on ‘A Cruel Affair’. It’s quite funny that her lyrics contain her insecurities about how others perceive her. She says writing is her way of healing and letting it pour out through songs, but she fears people in her life see it as a way to cause harm and upset. I have to say, as I knew nothing of the artist, I was expecting something that was pop or R&B. I didn’t expect such a diverse and balanced record of rocking tunes, downtempo, acoustic ballads, with, as mentioned before, the odd piano ballad. This unexpected variety is what makes her work so intriguing. I will definitely seek out her material in the future.

Song recommendations: ‘Take a Bite’, ‘Beaches’, ‘Girl Song’

9/10

Week 6: Celeste- Not Your Muse

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I might put this in the bio somewhere because this is getting to be something of a soundbite on my reviews (Albeit it is utterly authentic.), but once again, it was through Later…with Jools Holland that I discovered Celeste. I remember she performed “Lately” and “Strange” with just her incredible vocals and the piano to accompany her (I’m pretty sure that Jools joined her on one of the tracks.). At the same time, the likes of Liam Gallagher looked on, on that October night in 2019 at the original home of the Later series. From there, Celeste would go on to more extraordinary things. In the year just past, she won BBC Sounds Artist of the Year, joining the likes of Adele, Ellie Goulding, and Michael Kiwanuka, and that’s an excellent accolade to claim to look at the success it has brought for the artists. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Celeste followed their path. Since her debut, she has featured on Later twice to discuss the music she likes and what inspires her in the lockdown edition of the last series and the socially distanced 2021 Hootenanny on New Year’s Eve.

Of course, this long-awaited album has seen her popularity soar, and you hear her songs everywhere, from the supermarket to the radio to the television. If anyone complains about that, I don’t know why; she has such a fantastic voice and reminds me of a rising star back in 2006 called Corinne Bailey Rae, who was heading to the top until a setback put her career on hold. She is now steady in her career and will soon release an album that attracts mainstream listeners. My point is that Celeste sounds like her, and I will also throw in Lianne La Havas. I hear that when Celeste sings a mixture of Corinne Bailey Rae and Lianne La Havas, respectively. It’s not a bad combination if I say so myself.

When I was referring to Celeste’s tracks being pretty much everywhere, here are two examples I mean: You have “Stop This Flame”, a track with a piano riff that, when I heard it, felt very familiar to Rhythm is Rhythm’s “Strings of Life”, which in turn inspired Noel Gallagher to write “AKA…What a Life!”, so, yeah, the track sounds like those two combined. It is also very commercial, and one might be categorised under pop. It is also very different from the kind of music Celeste has sung or put out in the past. The uplifting tempo and optimistic lyrics encouraged Sky Sports to use it to open their Super Sunday programme since the start of the 2020/2021 football season. Of course, an advert was released in October last year to promote the Christmas period. The advert in question was for John Lewis/Waitrose, and the company chose Celeste’s “A Little Love”. You can certainly hear Lianne La Havas coming through in that one. The fantastic thing about Celeste is even if you are unaware of her, I guarantee you have listened to her wherever you have been, heard on the radio, or watched on the television. You might have bought a magazine, and there’s been an interview, article, or even an advert promoting her music. She is very much like her fellow winners of BBC Sounds because she can cause an earthquake with her vocals, be tender with almost a whisper, and sound fragile while delivering a song about heartbreak. For example, “Stop This Flame” shows off her ability to sing with passion and loud, “A Little Love” to sing very quietly and softly, and “Strange” where she can sing with a fragile voice and appear broken-hearted to match the song’s subject.

I disagree with the comparisons to Adele in terms of the vocals. I think elements of this album sound more like what the late Amy Winehouse would do (I should have mentioned her earlier in what this record sounds like. I felt it had Amy Winehouse-esque songs, sonically.), I can also imagine Mark Ronson teaming up with Celeste at some point and producing an album with her. Jamie Hartman is one of the producers on the album and has worked with the likes of Rag n Bone Man. The only comparison I can draw with Adele is how the record goes from pop to ballads with Celeste, just like Adele, singing with just an acoustic guitar to accompany her. Funnily enough, the album starts just like that. Celeste is singing “Ideal Woman” over just an acoustic guitar. Another comparison would be her ability to be melancholic and tracks of that nature. She doesn’t fake the delivery on the more sombre tracks. Just like an actor, she goes into character effortlessly.

Some have argued that this album is too safe and Celeste hasn’t taken any risks, but I beg to differ. I never expected her to try something like “Stop this Flame” or “Tonight Tonight”. I didn’t expect a Mark Ronson-inspired production with “Love is Back”. It was an outstanding effort by Celeste, and there are a few surprises along the way on the album. I listened to the deluxe edition, so the record ends on her rendition of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”, which is an unusual way to end an album, but it works. I recommend buying or listening to “Not Your Muse” because Celeste is an incredibly talented artist, and more is to come from her.

Song recommendations: “Stop This Flame”, “Ideal Woman”, “Strange”

9/10