photo courtesy of Howlin’ Wuelf Media

Haroula Rose – Here the Blue River

Album Review of Haroula Rose: Here the Blue River

Haroula Rose‘s voice is ethereal. In fact, first track “Songbird” kicks the album off appropriately, with a calm, enjoyable, otherworldly feel.  (I also like that she ends the album with “Songbird (Reprise),” one of those cool things musicians used to do to bring their works of art full-circle back in the days when albums were king.)

image courtesy of Howlin’ Wuelf Media

It’s followed by “Margo,” the song that perhaps stands out the most for me from this collection. It has a hooky rhythm and catchy chorus that inspires singing along. All this while maintaining the relaxed energy of the album as a whole.

There’s a cool, rhythmic, musical line that adds character throughout “Moon and Waves” as the song periodically builds to power and mellows.

“The River (Drifting)” has a uniquely haunting aspect to its mellowness with a cleverly picked string backed by a more formidable orchestral wall, as if ushering a classical movie soundtrack through one scene and on to the next.

photo courtesy of Howlin’ Wuelf Media

“Sirens” showcases a ’70s psychedelia musical vibe, pulsing along with its purposeful rhythm moving around a vocal more forceful than most on this disc, though still very high and light.

Through “Premontion,” it flows into “This Old House,” a rather wistful, reminiscent, perhaps even melancholy track exceptionally well-suited to Haroula Rose’s soft delivery.

Ethereal music is difficult to get right while keeping it interesting, but Here the Blue River seems to have achieved that balance.