you know, I have to give Scarlett Johansson credit. she could have taken the easy route and released some sort of vanity album with a slick pop producer similar to what countless other young celebs have done in the past. with her pull in the industry, she could have easily gotten the top pop/R&B producers to get her radio-ready songs for her to be auto-tuned on top of. instead, she got together with TV On the Radio’s Dave Sitek to record an album of Tom Waits covers titled Anywhere I Lay My Head. So, it’s great to see that she’s not doing this as a promotional tool to further own celebrity status but you have to wonder what the point of all this is then. I don’t think this album appeals to the majority of Tom Waits fans. and let’s just say that Johansson’s voice wouldn’t get her past the first round of American Idol auditions. But I like Sitek’s approach here surrounding Johansson with broad sonic soundscapes saturated with reverb. with the textured instrumental arrangements, Johansson’s vocals aren’t necessarily the focal point which is wise since she’s obviously got a limited vocal range. Sitek brought in musicians like Nick Zinner, David Bowie, Jaleel Bunton and Tunde Adebimpe to help create layers of sound reminiscent of Brian Eno and Phil Spector. I’m not sure if I’ll be listening to this disc six months from now but I have to say that it’s an interesting concept and a definite stand-out among other projects done by celebrities turned wanna-be singers. highlights include: Falling Down, Fanning Street and I Don’t Want to Grow Up.
Leave a Reply