Miranda Barber - 'Lips Decision'
It’s an unfortunate truth that first impressions of a piece of music will often almost completely determine whether one likes it or not. It may be the most lovingly wrought and beautifully delivered song in the world, but if there isn’t that initial spark of recognition at the work of a kindred soul then chances are it will be passed over for something with a more immediate kick. Sad but true.
All of which is doubly unfortunate when the music in question is the debut of someone who has obviously poured tremendous energy into her first serious artistic statement, as is the case with Aussie ex-pat Miranda Barber’s ‘Lips’ Decision’. From the first note of ‘The Num Num Song’ I loathed it, the horribly irritating carefree lyrics, the Nina Simone-lite delivery, the sunny and upbeat acoustic bass line and the jazz inflected harmonies combining into something that seemed calculated, disingenuous and infuriatingly cheerful.
Once that vile opener has passed however things take a fortunate turn for the better, many of the following tracks discarding the jazzy adornments that threatened to drown Barber’s song-writing in a soup of cliché in favour of a much more candid piano-driven style of pop. Barber has a versatile voice, kicking and slurring in sharp staccato snips as on ‘Eliza’, before suddenly sliding up an octave or two, effortlessly hitting the high notes with a warmly smooth poise.
The sassy (and explicit) uke-accompanied ‘Show Me Yours’ is unexpectedly enticing, playing on Barber’s undeniable sex-appeal, while the expansive and reflectively nocturnal ‘My Tomorrow’ is reminiscent of the fragile honesty of early Tori Amos. As is the simmering, violently underscored ‘Bad Man’ that follows, her cheerfully playful lyrical style becoming transfigured by its furious subtext.
But this is the biggest problem with the album as a whole, the effect of such sumptuously bared moments as the radiantly beautiful chorus of ‘A Thousand Seas’ being mitigated by tracks such as the almost obnoxiously upbeat ‘Too Damn Hard’. If one isn’t immediately put off by the forced-jollity of some of the material, there is some gorgeous music to be found here.