Katie Burden: Strange Moon
Katie Burden
Strange Moon
(Cautionary Tail)
Katie Burdenās Strange Moon is full of atmosphere and drive. At times she mines Kate Bush (actually, lots of times), other times she gets intense, torch-song-chanteuse-like.Ā Opening with the metallic slicing, certainly Kate Bush-like vocalizing of āDonāt Ask,ā Burton manages a good driving build here with anĀ infectious chorus, drums, and piano. āI Can See It Clearā is a more straight-ahead offering, a stark verse production under Katieās singing in her lower range. Itās a very good tune indeed. āEarsā has those warbly vocals again, background droplet hits, and little girl-like la-laās.Ā The title track with its wispy, high, single key-note behind the back-and-forth tom hits and slow, nearly imperceptible lyrics undulate probably the best of all these kinds of slinky, trying-hard-to-be-weird songs. The beat is sly and there is a witchy brilliance to Burtonās singing/chanting here. The ending is pretty much as weād expect ā the brew gets twisty and Burton wails a bit, but itās all done very well.Ā āToo Good for Loveā has some nice single-note guitar bending work and features Burton probably at her sexiest. She really oohās well, drawing you in, but itās that expressive guitar that makes this one. āCoffeeā ends the collection with Burton again singing tight-lipped and gurgling, with some effective dripping electric guitar behind her. Things pick up and swirl, Burton opens things up with her limited wail and once again we are tripping on her soundscape.