I couldn't figure out why at first but I think it's because of a lot of what you note here: the two-part songs (or two-song tracks) almost make it hard to keep aware of where you are in terms of a track list. I normally don't care that much BUT

>3. This is a long album. A few times I wondered if I was
>halfway through the album and I realized I was only at
>"Sunshine".
>Side B is full of songs that sounded like album-ending songs
>so I kept thinking "OK, THIS is the end" only to hear a new
>song follow it.

YES. This is my current nit-pick. Right now, I don't dislike anything on the record. I like some tunes more than others but I'm not mad at anything, I don't get itchy fingers to skip ahead. But you hit on the head: there are a lot of wrap-up moments here, album closers and several of them come right in a row. It's a fake-out but not in a good way -- it keeps me from sinking into it a bit more, hearing it as an album...

Plus, musically and lyrically, it's not light. A lot of the lyrics are simply written but that doesn't take away from the heaviness of what she's talking about (it almost emphasizes it and complements it).

So yeah, it's going to take a bit to really wrap my head around this one. That's not a bad thing by any stretch though; it's a good problem to have.


>6. Oh yeah, the Stevie stylings are there. Good look
>thebigfunk.
>

What's resonating is that kind of minimalist drum work of Stevie that you also find on Minnie's records, a lot of classic Roberta Flack, so much other stuff from that period. Tight but also loose and flowing; crisp snares/kicks but often very hushed as a whole. And it's that drummming that connects direct to '00s-period neo-soul, too -- which makes a lot of sense as an inspiration to this album.

Combined with the confessional/honest element, this feels very much of that '70s period in soul/r&b but not derivative at all.

-thebigfunk

~ i could still snort you under the table ~