Initial Feelings On IYD

[Artemis]

Will contain spoilers, obviously.

I didn't want to clog up the Rolling Stone thread with this, so I figured a new thread could be funky. Anyone can feel free to post their thoughts on the album here. I'll start!

At first, I wanted to listen to the track and then type what I thought. Halfway through, I realised that was a stupid idea as I’d be too busy focusing on the next song, so about the time of New Orleans, I just started writing down what I thought of each song. So if you noticed that there’s a sudden shift in writing style, that’ll be why!

Secret Love; what can I say? I really like this song. Mainly for the guitar, and the fact her voice sounds really really good on it. It’s a nice, gentle way to open the album. It shouldn’t turn people off, and it should make them want more. I think it works quite nicely as an album opener; whilst not an epic like Bella Donna, Wild Heart or Trouble In Shangri-La, it works. The guitar is really atmospheric and sets the tone for the rest of the album, imo.

For What It’s Worth; I love the country-tinged guitar throughout the song, her voice sounds really good in this one, and I love it when she sings with herself; it’s used to a great effect here; she hasn’t sang this well for a long time.

In Your Dreams; Picking up the tempo here, it’s not what I expected from the title track. When I think of Stevie + Dreams, I think mid-tempo, I think yearning, I think romantic. This is totally different to what I expected, but in a good way. I have no idea why this isn’t the first single, it’s instantly catchy and infectious, with a great guitar beat that makes you want to move along. Some really gorgeous lyrics here too.

Wide Sargasso Sea; I love the start of the song, just Stevie and the guitar before it really starts kicking off. I’m loving the repeated “even though they were so in love / they drew a line in the sand just because” and “the only thing they did together / was to make love” possibly the most sexually direct Stevie’s ever been in any of her songs? I don’t know, but I love it. I love the whole haunting breakdown part that we heard in the sizzle reel; it works so well with the song, and serves as a really effective way to close the last half of the song, the ending on “that kiss” is particularly stunning.

New Orleans; after the intensity of Wide Sargasso Sea, this one slows down the tempo, and it’s really pretty in its simplicity. It’s nice to hear Stevie and the girls sing together (which, for me, is the first time on the album you can really hear Sharon and Lori since Secret Love). Some gorgeous high notes from Stevie on this song, showing that she hasn’t lost that fabulous falsetto. I love how the instrumental starts off really quiet, and gets louder as the song progresses, making the real focus all on Stevie and her voice. The chorus is so typically Stevie, I love it. I’ll be singing this all night, I can tell you now.

Moonlight (A Vampire’s Dream); this song, I was really worried about. Lady From The Mountains is my favourite Stevie demo of all time, and I was worried she wouldn’t do it justice. I’m very happy to say that she couldn’t have done it any better. Her vocal is really good throughout, she owns her voice; she knows exactly which notes she can and can’t sing, and rather than attempt something she can’t, she sticks to what she can and owns it. A very dramatic song, I love the updates to the lyrics of Lady From The Mountains; they flow really well, it doesn’t feel like she’s lifted the demo and slapped it into the middle of a song. It’s brilliant.

Annabel Lee; Wow that piano is really pretty. Loving the whole build-up to the song. I’m full of nothing but praise for Stevie’s vocals on this album, and although Annabel Lee wouldn’t have sounded out of place, vocally, on TISL, it has a strength and conviction to it. I don’t know how much of the lyrics are Poe, and which lyrics Stevie/Dave/Glen wrote, but they’re really pretty. Stevie recycles lyrics a lot on this album; but this isn’t a detriment to her ability at all, I love the recycling, it isn’t extensive enough to be a carbon copy, but it’s enough to make it very “Stevieish”. I love the use of the “bright eyes” lyric here. And that violin (?) instrumental break was really pretty. It gets pretty funky around the 4 minute mark, totally changing the mood of the song, but in a really clever way. I like this song a hell of a lot more than I thought I would! All those little “WHY did she pick THIS demo” thoughts have been well and truly banished now.

Soldier’s Angel; the intro really reminds me of Have No Heart; I wonder if that’s where she got the inspiration from. She doesn’t try to sing “well” on this one. If you get me. Instead she uses the unique sound her voice has developed to add to the mood of the song; and its super effective. The Lindsey harmony in the chorus is brilliant too. Possibly the most “serious” song Stevie’s ever written, the lyrics are both beautiful and haunting. Only Stevie Nicks can get away with singing “Camelot” too! I love how it gets so intense, before winding down to just her and Lindsey singing for the last half-minute or so. I’m loving the Battle of the Dragon lyric too, very effective. All my worries about this song; when I saw the poem, I thought it would be the next Stevie piano ballad and take “beautiful” into “sickeningly sweet” levels; all these worries are, thankfully, unfounded, and it’s really an atmospheric song.

Everybody Loves You; the intro music is really awesome. It’s like Gold Dust Woman meets Turkish Bazaar. Totally different to anything she’s ever done, yet still so totally Stevie. I sorta wish the strings (at least I think they’re strings) were more pronounced in the chorus; like they were in the demo. Although, I think the chorus is one of the most immediate on this album. Ooh, lyrics recycled from Not Make Believe; very nice, I love that song and I think I can love this one too. WOAH. When this song steps up, it REALLY steps up. Hello strings. Wow. This song is incredible. For those of you who were worried this song would be adult-contemporary-trash... you don’t have to worry about that at all. It’s so much more than that. Based on the snippet we’ve had forever, I always thought this would be a sweet little Stevie love song, so very wrong, but never have I been so deliciously happy to be so.

Ghosts Are Gone; that opening riff is an instant classic, I can tell. It’s like a modern day Rhiannon, with Rhiannon taking steroids. She’s not dancing around in a forest anymore! Love the passion in her voice on this one, and some gorgeous harmonization with Sharon and Lori. Recycling from Angel here; and it’s totally worthy to be Angel’s sequel. Stevie wailing over a guitar at the end? Hell yes. It really reminds me of the Rhiannon exorcisms from back in the day, minus all the drugs. This song shows why Stevie is the Queen of Rock and Roll; it’s an instant classic rock song, in my opinion. I really want to see her tackle this one live; I think it could be a show stopper.

You May Be The One; slowing things down a notch after Ghosts Are Gone. It sounds like a song a cabaret singer would sing, I mean that in a good way. It sounds pretty timeless. Very Stevie sounding lyrics, might possibly be the closest thing to filler on the album. It’s a very lovely song, and she sounds fantastic on it (and lots of Sharon and Lori, always a plus), but it doesn’t really inspire me as much as the others have done. The guitar is really nice throughout, and her voice is really impressive. The ending hits me as really effective.

Italian Summer; WOW! This song hits you straight away. Such a huge contrast from the dream-like You May Be The One, some gorgeous strings. (I’m a fan of strings). Gorgeous lyrics from Stevie here, I think it may be her most romantic song ever. It’s “epic” on the same level of Beauty and the Beast; but, I don’t think it has that same self-indulgence that Beauty and the Beast is sometimes accused of. Some fabulous long sustained notes from Stevie here. I’m liking the breakdown with Sharon and Lori doing the ahhhs in front of the orchestra, it’s quite pretty. Stevie’s singing is really good here; she’s using her voice to a fantastic level; singing softly when necessary, and using power when she needs to. I loved the ending, although, they could have slowed down the last two lines; it felt a teeny bit rushed, but that looooong sustained note was totally worth it.

Cheaper Than Free; while I’ve always quite liked this song, mainly cause I think it’s adorable, it works so much better in the context of the album. After the dramatic, powerful and all-round showstopper that is Italian Summer, it works wonderfully to wrap the album up. I believe someone on the forum described it as having a “post-sex cigarette” and that is pretty much the perfect way to sum it up.

All in all, it’s a bloody brilliant album. She’s finally using her voice to its full potential. Whilst sometimes on TISL she sounded strained, and some of her longer notes were unpleasant, and she sounded overly-nasal, she doesn’t have that problem on this album. She’s able to switch from crooning like a baby to belting out effortlessly. Even when she’s belting, she doesn’t sound strained; she sounds confident and assured. I think there’s something for every Stevie fan in this album. The lyrics are gorgeous and the music is fabulous; and she hasn’t sounded this good on record since Silver Springs on The Dance.