The Light by Shannon Hurley

Album Review from "The Daily Album":

Indie rock, singer songwriter, alternative pop? Not quite sure how to label this, but if any of those genres appeals to you, Hurley’s latest will be sure to please.
Today’s artist has seen her share of successes over the past six or seven years. After being named one of Rolling Stone’s best 25 artists on MySpace following her 2007 debut Ready to Wake Up, Shannon Hurley has published two more LPs prior to The Light. Hurley’s songs have been featured on a plethora of television series, including: American Idol, The Lying Game, 90210, and So You Think You Can Dance. She is also 1/2 the electronic duo Lovers & Poets with husband Ben Eisen.


Her latest release, The Light follows in the pop-rock, singer-songwriter style of her previous efforts. The writing and composition is solid from start to finish, without a weak track in this collection of ten new pieces. Hurley ups her production level, with an album that is increasingly polished without going over the top in an effort to achieve a mainstream sound. Just catchy enough to draw you in and pay attention to the metaphor-driven lyrics. Which, by the way, are one of the highlights of the album.

Hurley begins with the powerful and hopeful title track, and between the simple, hypnotic piano work and Hurley’s airy vocals, there is little not to like about this tune. The bridge offers a nice change from the pounding key-driven beat, and Hurley’s message comes across loud and clear. It’s no wonder that Shannon’s music makes it to the screen with such frequency; this is exactly the type of music that producers fall in love with. Pleasant on the ear and with a nice bell-curved emotional scheme. As the tune draws to an end, it’s like a nice, gentle crescendo.

Hurley takes a page out of Enya’s new age playbook with “Silver Lining”, an ethereal piece that is based more on a vision than on a distinct emotion or situation. Hurley plays well with metaphors and with figurative language in general, toying with ideas of expression rather than hammering things out bluntly, and on tracks like this, her lyrical prose is a nice complement to the instrumentation. Though Hurley imparts a seriously ambient and downtempo feel on “Silver Lining”, I feel that this one is ripe for an EDM mix. Just sayin’.

In stark contrast to the mood of “Silver Lining”, Hurley presents “Never Been In Love” and “Paradise Has Fallen”, which rely a bit more heavily on electro and dance elements, though to say that they are EDM would be a mistake. Really, they draw more on funk, r&b and disco, mixing melancholy and motion — sad songs that make you want to dance. I think ABBA had some luck with this idea, and Hurley finds success here as well, though her more pensive pieces are the strongest of this collection. “Angelyne” is a beautiful tune that one senses is a bit more first person than the lyrics let on. The most intriguing song, however, is the extra-terrestrial tune “Calling Occupants”. Channeling The Beatles and Radiohead, Hurley pushes the boundaries of this album far beyond what you’d expect from the title track. Kudos to Shannon for including this track and closing with a curious but awesome present.

Hurley has seen her share of good and bad, and her experiences are worth a read — you can check out her bio over at her website. It’s obvious that her travels and her encounters with life have shaped her songwriting, especially over the past few years. Hurley stays close to what she knows works with a few tracks but also pushes the envelope on quite a few tracks. Indie rock, singer songwriter, alternative pop? I’m not quite sure how to label this, but if any of those genres appeals to you, Hurley’s latest will be sure to please.

CREDITS

The Light (Written by Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Bass: Ben Eisen. Guitar: John Isaac Phinney. Drums: Darren Augustus. Recorded by Shannon Hurley & Michael Woodrum.
Here Right Now (Written by David Brownstein, Logan Heftel, & Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Guitar, bass: Ben Eisen.
Silver Lining (Written by Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Bass: Ben Eisen.
Never Been In Love (Written by Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Bass: Ben Eisen.
Breaking Me Slowly (Ft. Dax Bauser) (Written by Andrew Wilson, Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Vocals: Dax Bauser. Bass: Ben Eisen.
Won’t Hold Me Down (Written by Adrian Broekhuyse, Raz Nitzan, & Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Bass: Ben Eisen. Arrangement by Adrian Broekhuyse, Raz Nitzan, & Shannon Hurley.
Shape of Things to Come (Written by Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Bass, additional programming: Ben Eisen.
Angelyne (Written by Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley.
Paradise Has Fallen- Shannon Hurley Vs DJ Trotsky (Written by David Brownstein, Shannon Hurley) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Arrangement by Shannon Hurley, DJ Trotsky, & DJ Akal Dub.
Calling Occupants (Written by Terry Draper, John Woloschuk) Vocals, keys, programming: Shannon Hurley. Vocals, bass: Ben Eisen. Guitar: Steve Cunningham. Arrangement by Shannon Hurley with special thanks to Klaatu & The Carpenters!

All songs mixed and produced by Shannon Hurley.

TRACK LISTING

The Light
Here Right Now
Silver Lining
Never Been In Love
Breaking Me Slowly (Ft Dax Bauser)
Won't Hold Me Down
Shape of Things to Come
Angelyne
Paradise Has Fallen-Shannon Hurley Vs DJ Trotsky
Calling Occupants

Shannon's music can be heard on "Young & The Restless", "Scorpion","90210", "American Idol", & "So You Think You Can Dance". She is also 1/2 the electronic duo Lovers & Poets. She collaborates with top trance producers and has been supported by Armin Van Buuren & Paul Oakenfold.

shannonhurley.com