'World So Sweet'

Rachel Taylor Brown, a native of Portland, Oregon, showcases her unique ability to attract listeners with her seventh studio album World So Sweet.

The album opens with a three-minute introductory piece called “Sweetness On Earth.” It incorporates the sound of over fifty piano chords playing at once, and then all of a sudden, an angelic choir accompanies Taylor Brown as she swoops in with delicate and simple lyrics.

“Sister Jean” comes next and it’s a pleasing surprise. It begins with the calmness of a piano and Taylor Brown’s soft vocals, but it turns into a pop-rock foot-tapper within seconds. Despite the upbeat tempo of the song, it harbors a deeper meaning with lyrics like, “We’re so sorry about what went down at home/ Nothing left to do you know we all regret it we’re upset/ There’s nothing anyone wouldn’t have done if only we had known/ Nothing we could do you know we’re all upset and we regret.”

Another song with lyrics worth mentioning is “Didymus The Twin V. The Divine Sparkler.” The song has a soothing and appealing beat itself, but with lyrics like, “Mary had a son Jesus/ Some say she had two/ But I doubt it,” you can’t help getting sucked into Taylor Brown’s eccentric little world.

The only thing that may irk some listeners about the album is the constant repeating. The majority of the songs have excellent lyrics, but those great lyrics are repeated so much, they almost lose meaning.

This is seen most prominently in “How To Make A World Class Gymnast.” The lyrics “You get them when they’re young and you bend them, you bend them” are repeated over and over again with backtrack of people saying the exact same lyrics over and over again as well. It may be a poetic masterpiece to some, but for others, it’s a little overwhelming.

Overall, World So Sweet is a refreshing album that pushes the boundaries. It’s nothing like the music that is being played regularly on the radio, but that’s what makes it so intriguing. It’s nice to hear something new for a change, and that’s exactly what you get when you listen to this album.