Cindy Louise- ‘Whispers of a Kingdom

Reviewed by Duzzy Clayton

 

Cindy Louise is a musician I have been a fan of for a long time, and I have always kept my eye on her knowing she is destined for greatness. So when I heard she had come out with a new album, I was very excited.
Having interviewed Cindy a few times, I do remember that she said her sound might change soon because she is looking to go into a more theatrical kind of sound and after listening to this album from start to finish I can definitely; see she has achieved that sound with most of the songs on the album, Now Cindy hasn’t changed her sound drastically, as it is still the Cindy Louise we have come to love but I can hear an element of ‘growing up’ in her sound and she is moving in the right direction to be amongst some of the best the world has to offer such as musicians such as Amy Lee or Tarja Turunen.
Track 1, namely, You Think You’ve Won is a short just under 2-minute track, but it seems to be a powerful way to start the album. One thing I have always admired about Cindy Louise is her music always gives off that empowerment kind of feeling, and this track oozes that feeling by saying “You think you have won but you haven’t heard me roar” kind of a message 
Track 2, namely Eyes That Speak, gives that theatrical kind of sound I spoke about earlier, Cindy has achieved what she set out to do, her voice sounds amazing and beautiful and almost opera like as she dances around the notes with her beautiful singing. I feel a sense of playfulness as I hear this song. I think this track has great potential to do well on a score or a movie soundtrack 
I am only two tracks in and I am blown away, there are still 8 tracks to go from this 10 track album, and I’m excited to jump to the next song 
 
Track 3 namely, Society, is a dramatic number that starts like a Tiuna Turner song but mixed with the angelic voice of Cindy Louise, the vocals start quickly instantly drawing you into the song, one thing I need to mention is Cindy’s songwriting and ability to tell a story and make you sit back and listen, this is evident in the first few lines of this song, without comparing Cindy to other artists too much but this reminds me a lot of Alannah Myles, Black Velvet, but once again Cindy putting on that extra bit of edge that just makes you stop and listen closer but with a hint of familiarity. By the time we hit the chorus, I find myself tapping and moving to the beat, having said that I would like to mention the music of all the songs on the album, the instruments all sound great and I love the cool beat of the drums and guitar on this track. To all involved in the making of this album, you can be very proud of the outcome. 
Moving on to track 4, namely, Rebel, is another dramatic start to the song, I do like the extra bit of vocals and sounds in this song as we start, hhhmm and aahs, till we get into the actual lyrics, is a nice bit of extra that sets the mood of the song. Once again I take away from this song a hint of empowerment. My favorite lyric in the song after the I’m a Rebel part is “People keep fighting me but I won’t let go”. I do believe this song is great for radio, and has got just enough repetition to get stuck in your head and then also enough angst to make you feel like you can take on the world 
Track 5, and I take a quick breath from typing to go make some coffee leaving this track which is called Alone playing in the background, without steering the listener too far away from making their mind up about what the song is about, I feel this song is a more vulnerable side of Cindy Louise, which is a change because I know her to be all about empowerment and being a strong woman. Still, with a drop of a hat, she shows her sad side and feels alone in the world of a person who is seen by many in a drama and or on a stage. What a shame it is, now once again this is my interpretation, you as a listener or Cindy as a writer might feel differently, but it is a beautifully written song, and Cindy; ‘s voice sounds beautiful, vulnerable, and angelic. 
Coffee in hand I am over the halfway mark of an album that has been an emotional journey so far. it’s not often you get captivated by an album with each song and note sung, but here we are, Cindy, blowing me away with your beautiful songs 
Previous tracks like Outcast made me realize Cindy has a great and strong voice, but this new almost opera kind of sound is just a testament to just how talented Cindy is, and it makes me excited about just how far she can take this. This woman is talented through and through 
Track 6 namely, My Fantasy Reimagined, and once again I think this track would do well in a score of a movie or a soundtrack or even on a series like Game of Thrones. wait hang on a minute, this guitar on this track is amazing, bands such as Nightwish or Evanescence come to mind, and this is beginning to be my favorite track off the album. this is exactly the kind of song I was hoping to find on the album, more rocking than the other songs but still has that angelic sound throughout the album, I would love to see this song played live with some great stage props and lighting 
Track 7, I wonder if I can be as amazed as the previous track because, in my opinion, that was a strong track for a rocker like myself, Nothing Hurts Anymore is the name of this track, and I am pleasantly surprised at what I hear, okay not as rocking as the previous track but still a nice track, one thing also which I think is very important when putting an album together is song placement, when to put which song where to make the album flow, the less rocking track seems to work though and that is testament to great song placing making the listener go on a whirlwind of emotions. It is another dramatic song and I must say I love the violins and extra string arrangements I’m hearing. As the song goes on, I think to myself, there is that strong voice I know from her previous work, almost belching out the lyrics but making it sound amazing, another great strong song 
We are on Track 8 and this is the lead single off the album, the song that got sent to radio stations first before the album was released, so having played this on my show a few times, I am familiar with the song called Burn And Fall, one thing I think which indicates any song is going to be a good song is if it is memorable, yes I play a lot of new songs a day on my radio show, but not all of them are gonna stick, some new music is easily forgettable and you just go through the motions, but it takes a real powerful song to resonate with someone, for me to only hear it a few times and already know all the words and this song is exactly that, it is a huge song with catchy lyrics and powerful dramatic music, it made me take notice and I can see why Cindy and her team went with this track as the lead single, brilliant work from all involved
Track 9, namely Shadow Dreams and I am a bit sad we are almost at the end of the album but immediately lifted with this song, I love how Cindy changes her voice from verse to chorus, almost playing two characters or at least changing the songs vocal techniques with ease, something she has done throughout the album. Once again this is a great track of Cindy writing storytelling songs which she does so well. I am in awe of her ability to draw you in as a listener 
Track 10, the final song on the album, I wonder what kind of a song she is going to end on, is it going to be a soft mellow number, perhaps a nice way to end the journey we have all been on or is it going to be dramatic and hard track and leaving us wanting more?  I am torn to answer that question as it is a bit of both, it’s a bit mellow starting, and Cindy seems to dance around with her notes in time with the music, but by the time the drum beats come in, I’m tapping and dancing to the music, a perfect way to  end the album, a beautiful track which reminds me of an Irish Lord Of The Dance kind of feel to it 
I would like to congratulate all who worked on this album, everything from the vocals to the music arrangements, to the song placing to the producing, and mixing is done so well, this album is as good if not better than any album on the world stage, Well Done 

Author: Cindy-Louise

Composer: Cindy-Louise

Performers: Cindy-Louise

Vocals: Cindy-Louise

Guitars: Erick Gerber (Track 6)

Additional Instrumentation: Cali Beats (Callum Melville)

Label: Independent

Publisher: Independent

Producers: Cindy-Louise, Cali Beats (Callum Melville)

Mixed by: Cali Beats (Callum Melville) (Tracks 1-10), Ellis Neil (Track 3), Frank de Jong (Track 6), Martijn De Groot (Track 7)

Mastered by: Cali Beats (Callum Melville)

Recorded at: Home Studio (Tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10), Hal 5 Studio, Amsterdam (Tracks 3, 6, 7)

Sound Engineer: Martijn De Groot (Tracks 3, 7), Frank de Jong (Track 6)

Photos: Shaun Leighton

 

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