If you need to know anything about Ukraine, it's this: don't call it THE Ukraine cause it ain't The Ukraine, its Ukraine. Why do people call is The Ukraine? Cause back in the days of Commie-ness, the Russians wanted people to think that Ukraine was a part of USSR and therefore, started calling it The Ukraine. Now that the history lesson is complete, let's take a closer look at Ukraine's most Cat Power-esque import since, well since ever.
Alina Simone was born in Ukraine who knows when, but really, seriously, this shit isn't important. What's relevant to indieworkshop is her voice and what a juggernaut of an angelic voice it is. As mentioned, she's got the Cat Power schtick down, with a tinge of a less angry Sinead O'Conner and some Mirah. Whether she's lightly whispering with a barely touched guitar or half-howling behind a frolicking drum beat, her voice is some what Cat Power,
Prettier in the Dark is a late-night coffee shop album, but picture that fragile waif up there with a scarf and toque being suddenly accompanied by a ferocious backing band that explodes into songs at a moment's notice, therefore elevating the song from ‘yet another Cat Power sound-a-like' to swirling rock songs.
‘Cash American Pawn' would easily fade into the album's 6 songs if it weren't saved by one thing: hand claps. From no where, like a rig interrupting your road side sleep on a lost highway, hand claps protest their way into the song. It's a genius addition to an otherwise 4 chord strum along. Such antics save Simone from overt comparisons to other acoustic damsels in distress. It's these fragile risks (hand claps out of nowhere) that allows this album to become a mainstay in any 5 disc carousel.
Currently at work on a full length, this 6 song EP exists much like the Iron and Wine Woman King EP. It's stunningly gorgeous, intricate, and a straight up fucking tease.
- Darren Susin | 2005-10-16
