I've been listening to the album for more than a week now and certain songs are taking shape in ways I wasn't expecting - for instance, "Wide Sargasso Sea" (which remains my least favourite) is revealing a little more substance and as a groove, I can now tolerate it.
Stevie's vocal on "Soldier's Angel" is more to my liking now, but I still can't get past the outlandishly patriotic sentiment of the utterly prosaic lyrics - they just make me cringe and actually play into the perceptions some have of her as being obtuse in the extreme. Such a shame because Lindsey's contributions to this track are sublime. As stated previously, I really love the production of this track, but believe it falls short in terms of what should have been a more meaningful, engaging and less literal lyric. Silly Stevie!!
"In Your Dreams" has also grown on me, but I do think it seems a little contrived, particularly in terms of attempting to approximate the sound of Taylor Swift. It actually also sounds strangely like The Travelling Wilburys on speed. Less prominent guitar, some tinkly piano and a little "sparkledust" could really transform this - maybe a single remix might attend to matters?
"The Ghosts Are Gone" is entrenching itself rather nicely, but I still think it's lacking something and of course, is at least a minute too long. I love epic songs, but this just seems to fall short of the mark. Both "Moonlight" and "Annabel Lee" are epic tracks that do not outstay their welcome, rather I wish they would both continue past their running times. I also would like "Everybody Loves You" to run for another minute or so with just the orchestral arrangement - how gorgeous would that be?
PS "New Orleans" is becoming more enchanting with each listen - I was wary of this song before hearing it, but it's charming the knickers off me...
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