The Sunday Review - The Shocking Miss Emerald (Caro Emerald)

Buy at Amazon
Rating: 3.5/5
Track listing
1. Miss Emerald: Intro
2. One Day
3. Coming Back as a Man
4. Tangled Up
5. Completely
6. Black Valentine
7. Pack up the Louie
8. I Belong to You
9. The Maestro
10. Liquid Lunch
11. Excuse My French
12. Paris
13. My 2 Cents
14. The Wonderful in You

This album opens with a dramatic introduction that lasts 39 seconds, completely taking you by surprise with the full orchestra and certainly putting the 'shocking' into the title before the album has really begun. This intro flows nicely into the first full song, 'One Day' which is a very upbeat and feel-good, demonstrating Caro's recent success and star quality through lyrics and what can only be described as storyline. I am of the opinion that if an album is going to be worth buying the first two tracks will be amazing, and with 'One Day' being followed by 'Coming Back as a Man' this album gave me high expectations.

As far as musical content goes, I'm not going to give you a rundown of each and every track - you can take my word for it, listen to it online and then click this link or the one at the top of the page and buy the album to hear it all for yourself. For post length purposes I'll only write about the top songs in my opinion.

My favourite song on the whole album is 'Completely' because of it's old feel - and we all know how much of a sucker I am for that. Perhaps not only that but it's very relatable, especially if you've ever met a person who changed you for the better completely and completed you. Real wind instruments, a nice swing and a mix of technology, trad jazz and beautiful lyrics make for a perfect song.

'I recall the days when I was single, used to flirt, fool around and mingle. Then you came along, and suddenly I changed completely' - Caro Emerald 'Completely'

'Coming Back as A Man' is very sexy both lyrically and musically - noting that it in fact was not written by her but still seems as if it is. If you want something that sizzles and reminds you of her previous album, this is the track.

The other tracks I would recommend that you take a listen to are 'Liquid Lunch' - accurately describing the feeling of going out and getting wasted on a Saturday night in a somewhat classy way, 'I Belong To You', which really says it in the title, 'Excuse My French' if you want something that shows female dominance and 'The Wonderful in You' if you're after something meaningful that somewhat resembles a ballad.

Technologically speaking, this album is brilliant. The producer David Schreurs and the team are simply astounding with way that they combine hip hop and pop with jazz. A great variety of technology is used and if you are a Tech student I'm sure you can have a great deal of fun listening and trying to name each instrument and effect.

Overall, I found this album to have a lovely mix of songs - although some of them are not exactly to my taste necessarily. There is something for everybody, and that means you are likely to dislike at least one or two tracks. However, if you want something overall sexy and flirtatious without being cheap and tacky then this is the album that you need. Caro's vocals are flawless, the instrumentation is perfect for the style and the lyrics are both catchy and relatable. What more could you need from her?

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