PRESS / ALBUM REVIEWS
COURIER MAIL REVIEW
COUNTRY, Lou Bradley, Love Someone (MGM), 4 stars. Reviewed by David Costello
SOME country voices are as fresh as a mountain waterfall. Think of Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss, and then add new Aussie artist Lou Bradley to the list.
This Mullumbimby singer is also a first-rate writer and it doesn't hurt that she is a late starter – a working mum in her mid-20s.
That experience comes through in songs that avoid the crushing blandness that dogs the lyrics on most Australian country albums.
Bradley has a nice turn of phrase and a playful, ironic touch. You can't pin her down in just a few listens. It can be said she is a free spirit.
In Too Far Gone, she promises: "I'll never cook using recipes . . . they don't mean anything to me." The same goes for Small Town Blues where Bradley wishes "I was a stranger in this town".
Most impressive is One Shoe – addressed to her eldest sister who died in 2000. This is touching rather than sentimental. While the singer lights a candle each year to mark her sibling's passing, she has only a shoe as a keepsake . . . "the other went out in a charity bag".
For a first-timer, Bradley keeps excellent company. The album is produced by Rod McCormack and features the A-list of local players – Bill Chambers, James Gillard, Mick Albeck and others.
The overall feel is country-bluegrass but Falling Out of Love Again is a successful foray into a cappella doo-wop. One to watch.
WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN
