Album, Single and EP Reviews


 

 

  Simplicity Chased Trouble Away by Sofie Reed


Simplicity Chased Trouble Away cover art

Artist: Sofie Reed
Title: Simplicity Chased Trouble Away
Catalogue Number: No catalogue number
Review Format: CD
Release Year: 2012



The blues done gone and got me again. You think it’s safe to go out and haunt those 12 bars all by yourself and you find that somebody does it better than you ever can. That’s the way I feel about Sofie Reed and her album “Simplicity Chased Trouble Away”. She does it better than I ever could and simplicity is the key to her approach..

Perhaps sensing that the blues is best kept close to its roots, Ms Reed keeps it simple and true throughout with little more than a splash of harmony vocals added to her one woman band endeavour. Blues standards like “Nobody knows The Troubles I’ve Seen” are duly handled with the necessary reverence and her own material – the edgy “Tinder For Your Love” stands out here – fits seamlessly alongside. You might think therefore that this is a serious album, perhaps even an academic one reflecting on  a musical form that can render itself out of time and place but fortunately that is not the case here as there is a playfulness and a clear love for the genre that shines through even the most emotionally downbeat moments. “Open”, for example, is handled as something of an exercise in syncopation and would, in all likelihood, transfer nicely to the piano.  You’d still want Ms Reed’s once bitten twice shy voice though. Trust me, you would.

Hats off then to Sofie Reed for being an honest performer in a dishonest world.

The album is available from CD Baby.


www.sofiereed.com
Reviewer:
Review Date: April 8 2013