Spring Break
Dido brings it back 'Home'
3 out of 5 stars
Alyssa Carroll
Issue date: 11/20/08 Section: Focus
Perhaps one of the least anticipated albums of the year, Dido's "Safe Trip Home," is unsurprisingly just OK. Best known for her song "Thank You," which was mixed into Eminem's hit track "Stan," Dido's newest album is composed of songs that all sound essentially the same as "Thank You," just not quite as good.
Pretty mellow overall, "Safe Trip Home" makes use of Dido's exceptional range of musical talents, including her ability to sing and play the piano, guitar, recorder, drums and more, resulting in a sound similar to that of Enya, Sarah Brightman or Sarah McLachlan.
Following her previous albums "Life for Rent" and "No Angel," this album seems to deal with a theme of loss, focusing on break-ups, a need to be alone and lost time, which can perhaps be attributed to the relatively recent death of Dido's father.
The single from the album, "Don't Believe in Love," is slow and sort of monotonous with repeating vocal arrangements, and lacks of any sort of range to the sound. The song is not a good example of the power of Dido's voice, and creates no real sense of emotional connection with the listener.
Perhaps a better choice for the single would have been "Never Want to Say It's Love," which is easy to listen to, slightly more up-tempo than "Don't Believe in Love" and retains the same slower, emotional Dido sound. This track stays with the loss theme, with lyrics like, "The second that I feel / Your safe hands / Reaching out for mine / I slip away and out of sight / You've overstayed your time."
"Burnin' Love" joins the oddly paired vocal talents of Citizen Cope with Dido's, creating a surprisingly outstanding mish-mash of his scratchy mouth-full-of-marbles voice with her strong clear one. The unique combination makes for one of the best songs on the album.
One of the most remarkable tracks is "Grafton Street," which is an almost sad, slower song in which Dido gets to use the true range of her voice. The emotionally charged track has a mid-song recorder instrumental break-down, and anyone who can make the recorder emotionally moving should be credited.
Overall, this CD has the potential for appreciation by previous Dido fans, but will probably have a hard time convincing those who were not fans of her previous work. Though "Safe Trip Home," is not a necessarily new venture for Dido or anything new to the music world, her strong beautiful voice and emotional sound is worth a listen.
Pretty mellow overall, "Safe Trip Home" makes use of Dido's exceptional range of musical talents, including her ability to sing and play the piano, guitar, recorder, drums and more, resulting in a sound similar to that of Enya, Sarah Brightman or Sarah McLachlan.
Following her previous albums "Life for Rent" and "No Angel," this album seems to deal with a theme of loss, focusing on break-ups, a need to be alone and lost time, which can perhaps be attributed to the relatively recent death of Dido's father.
The single from the album, "Don't Believe in Love," is slow and sort of monotonous with repeating vocal arrangements, and lacks of any sort of range to the sound. The song is not a good example of the power of Dido's voice, and creates no real sense of emotional connection with the listener.
Perhaps a better choice for the single would have been "Never Want to Say It's Love," which is easy to listen to, slightly more up-tempo than "Don't Believe in Love" and retains the same slower, emotional Dido sound. This track stays with the loss theme, with lyrics like, "The second that I feel / Your safe hands / Reaching out for mine / I slip away and out of sight / You've overstayed your time."
"Burnin' Love" joins the oddly paired vocal talents of Citizen Cope with Dido's, creating a surprisingly outstanding mish-mash of his scratchy mouth-full-of-marbles voice with her strong clear one. The unique combination makes for one of the best songs on the album.
One of the most remarkable tracks is "Grafton Street," which is an almost sad, slower song in which Dido gets to use the true range of her voice. The emotionally charged track has a mid-song recorder instrumental break-down, and anyone who can make the recorder emotionally moving should be credited.
Overall, this CD has the potential for appreciation by previous Dido fans, but will probably have a hard time convincing those who were not fans of her previous work. Though "Safe Trip Home," is not a necessarily new venture for Dido or anything new to the music world, her strong beautiful voice and emotional sound is worth a listen.
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