Shelley Harland

The first Australian album from transient singer-songwriter and producer Shelley Harland is intriguing to say the least.

 

Red Leaf is unashamedly a ‘pop” album but in an era where “pop” has become even more of a dirty word this album is a statement that “pop music” need not mean Idol contestants warbling sickly imitations of disposable genres.

 

For those needing an easy entry point intro Shelley Harland’s music references like Aimee Mann and Natalie Merchant may be useful, but there’s little echoes of artists like Mazzy Starr (a less maudlin version thereof!) and Fleetwood Mac laced through these songs. She actually reminds me of the revered and long missing in action Syd Straw. You kinda get the feeling that if Anton Fier was casting for a Golden Palominos collective these days he would have found Shelley Harland.

 

Then you get a song like Friday which is just an irresistible cheery pop song that wouldn’t be out of place on a Sheena Easton album! And while that probably sounds like a back-handed compliment, the song is just so endearing that its hard to be too dismissive. It’s kinda like those early Frente singles.

 

Harland has commuted between London, New York and Sydney and has evolved as a largely self taught musician who has mastered everything from dance music to electronica to working with the likes of John Cale and a host of underground and not-so-underground dance and electronic luminaries.

 

She’s got an extraordinary voice – it’s a delicate as gossamer and as pure as the proverbial driven snow and yet she manages to inject appropriate doses of shade and light into these songs – on a song like Sorry there’s a pain in the voice that reveals a maturity that a pop poppet could not have summoned.

 

There’s a lot more to this artist than meets the eye and it’s no surprise to me that Elvis Costello has recruited her as the opening act for his Australian tour – readers of this site are the types that are probably going to see Costello so I’d recommend that you get there on time and catch the early part of the show.

 

Shelley Harland is probably capable of more challenging and risk-taking music that Red Leaf provides but this album finds her fighting the good fight to give 2009 pop music a good name. On songs like Panic To Control, Stranger, In The Dark and the title track she succeeds admirably.