Sarah King (from the album When It All Goes Down available on Ringleader Records) (by Brian Rock)
Blues newcomer Sarah King makes her powerful album debut on When It All Goes Down. Although from Vermont, her musical roots clearly lie in the Mississippi Delta. Combining the power and emotional depth of Bessie Smith and Etta James with the gritty realism of Janiva Magness and KT Tunstall, adding just a touch of ethereal with a Kate Bush tremolo, Sarah King’s voice is instantly captivating and compelling.
“Always an Almost” opens the album with a Soul drenched Blues ballad of yearning for what is so near, yet always seems just out of reach. Classic Memphis Stax Soul musical influences drip from every note. Hammond organ and saxophone create the mood as the bass line slowly pushes the story forward. In the background, persistent cymbal taps create a sense of urgency as King moans ‘almost won first place. Almost finished the race. Past mistakes were almost erased’. Recalling missed opportunities and lost shots at glory, Sarah King soon turns her attention to deeper losses as she sings, ‘almost changed the past. Almost made true love last…’ in “Always an Almost”. Sarah King’s voice manages to combine power and vulnerability as she pours out the pain of not just losing; but losing after you almost reached your goal. Finish last, and you know victory was never in the cards for you; finish second, and you spend the rest of your life wondering what small tweak could have propelled you to victory. Whether in sports or career or love, ‘almost is the saddest word there is. Sarah King makes you feel that sorrow down to your soul.
Focusing on relationships, King sings the Blues about the ‘almost’ side of love on “The Longest Night”. Capturing the tone and feel of Eilen Jewell, she laments a man who likes ‘having a good woman more than you like trying to be a good man’. “Blame it on the Booze” tackles toxic relationships of a different flavor. With propulsive percussion and haunting background vocals, King warns that there’s nothing ‘more dangerous than a woman pushed to new lows – she’s got nothing left to lose’. A thoroughly modern twist on Blues, the song incorporates theatrical, Lady Gaga style piano to evoke a sense of foreboding throughout. Piano also adds a barrelhouse flair to her cover of Led Zeppelin’s, “Hey Hey What Can I Do”. “The Moth” uses haunting Celtic rhythms to describe the allure and consequence of an unfaithful lover. “You Were Wrong About Me” captures the Blues Rock stylings of KT Tunstall to flip a flying finger of defiance to a controlling ex-lover. Of course, a string of bad relationships takes its toll on a heart. Seeking solace, some turn to the bottle to ease the pain. “Whiskey Thinking” is a tender, piano ballad about the slow descent to the bottom of the bottle. “Pretty Things” takes a darker, Noir Blues look at addiction. Turning to Delta Blues, King faces the demons of addiction on “Devil’s Try”. A slow burning stomp-and-clap beat drive the song as dobro and organ add a haunting background; scattered electric guitar strokes flash like lighting across a midnight sky. Against this dismal setting, Sarah King sings ‘the Devil says he’ll drink with me just as long as I got the tab’.
What was once emotional despair has turned into a spiritual crisis. The When It All Goes Down title track marks King’s journey through the long, dark night of the soul. Strident electric guitar introduces the song like an electrode shot to a dying heart. Singing ‘don’t judge another person’s choices till the choices they had are laid out for you’. Sarah King starts to assess her own journey. Like many dealing with addiction, she can only find the way up after she’s reached the very bottom. Acknowledging her bouts of ‘selfish destruction’ she has faced the worst of her demons and is finally ready to fight back. “Lord Take My Soul” is a musical surrender to a higher power; and a first step on the road to recovery. Starting with acoustic Delta Blues, the song soon explodes in electric Blues Gospel tones. Calling out for help, Sarah King cries ‘I’d like to rest my bones, but I cannot change my ways’.
When the dawn finally breaks on her darkness, Sarah King discovers that she was “Stronger Than You Ever Knew”. Pedal steel permeates the Bluesy Country/Rock rhythms as she sings ‘take all the time you need’. (by Brian Rock)
Listen and buy the music of Sarah King from AMAZON
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