Gregory Robson
08/12/09, 07:04 AM
Elizabeth and the Catapult - Taller Children
Record Label: Verve Forecast
Release Date: June 2, 2009
Elizabeth and the Catapult is a Brooklyn-based trio centered around the songwriting panache of Elizabeth Abby-Lyn Ziman. The trio's aural core has a definitive lounge and classical vibe, while also maintaining elements of pop and singer/songwriter standards.
On the heels of a strong DIY ethic, the group signed a deal with Verve Records and relocated to Nebraska to work with producer Mike Mogis. Said result is Taller Children, the group's major-label debut. The album begins with the snarky kiss-off "Momma's Boy," a playful slap-in-the-face to a needy lover, which has a bouncy beat and confident verses. Title track "Taller Children," has a rather mundane electro-percussive beginning but hits its stride around the two-minute mark. The string-backed ballad "Rainiest Day of Summer, " follows and proves that Ziman's strengths certainly shine on ballads. Her attempt at straightforward honesty is "Apathy," an ode to anhedonia and the pangs that accompany being mired in a malaise. Reaching for something a little more whimsical, "The Hang Up," provides some of the album's more playful sentiments and Ziman's most inspired notes.
One of the Taller Children's most memorable rock songs is "Hit the Wall," a cheery, jittery number that features the disc's most accessible chorus, while "Right Next To You," has the torch vibe down pat, calling to mind Dusty Springfield, amidst a sea of keyboard, vibraphone and flugelhorn. Ziman tackles Leonard Cohen on "Everybody Knows," which truth be told sounds a lot more scintillating than the legend's version. That's not much of a stretch though, considering Cohen's wooden vocals never offer much in the first place. The disc ends with three straight sultry ballads, of which, only the slow-moving "Golden Ink" is the most memorable.
For all its charms, Taller Children has trouble standing on its own. The middle half of the album is at times uninspiring and the latter half seems to drag. This is of particular importance because the album's opening doesn't exactly push forward with gusto or kinesis. That being said there's an undeniable coffeehouse charm at work here and the intimacy and warmth is comforting. Ziman studied film scoring during her college years and the album's many layers and swirling atmospherics reveal that her time in college was well-spent. A brutally honest wordsmith, Ziman writes songs that pattern the innerworkings of the daily struggle and that talent alone is probably what will make her relative for years to come.
Elizabeth ZIman (keys, vocals)
Danny Mload (drums)
Pete Lallish (guitar)
1. Momma's Boy
2. Taller Children
3. Rainiest Day of Summer
4. Race You
5. Apathy
5. The Hang Up
6. Hit the Wall
7. Right Next To You
8. Everybody Knows
9. Complimentary Me
10. Golden Ink
11. Just in Time
The Bird and The Bee, Ingrid Michaelson, Norah Jones, Inara George
Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/elizabethandthecatapult)
Website (http://www.elizabethandthecatapult.com)
Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/thecatapult)
Record Label: Verve Forecast
Release Date: June 2, 2009
Elizabeth and the Catapult is a Brooklyn-based trio centered around the songwriting panache of Elizabeth Abby-Lyn Ziman. The trio's aural core has a definitive lounge and classical vibe, while also maintaining elements of pop and singer/songwriter standards.
On the heels of a strong DIY ethic, the group signed a deal with Verve Records and relocated to Nebraska to work with producer Mike Mogis. Said result is Taller Children, the group's major-label debut. The album begins with the snarky kiss-off "Momma's Boy," a playful slap-in-the-face to a needy lover, which has a bouncy beat and confident verses. Title track "Taller Children," has a rather mundane electro-percussive beginning but hits its stride around the two-minute mark. The string-backed ballad "Rainiest Day of Summer, " follows and proves that Ziman's strengths certainly shine on ballads. Her attempt at straightforward honesty is "Apathy," an ode to anhedonia and the pangs that accompany being mired in a malaise. Reaching for something a little more whimsical, "The Hang Up," provides some of the album's more playful sentiments and Ziman's most inspired notes.
One of the Taller Children's most memorable rock songs is "Hit the Wall," a cheery, jittery number that features the disc's most accessible chorus, while "Right Next To You," has the torch vibe down pat, calling to mind Dusty Springfield, amidst a sea of keyboard, vibraphone and flugelhorn. Ziman tackles Leonard Cohen on "Everybody Knows," which truth be told sounds a lot more scintillating than the legend's version. That's not much of a stretch though, considering Cohen's wooden vocals never offer much in the first place. The disc ends with three straight sultry ballads, of which, only the slow-moving "Golden Ink" is the most memorable.
For all its charms, Taller Children has trouble standing on its own. The middle half of the album is at times uninspiring and the latter half seems to drag. This is of particular importance because the album's opening doesn't exactly push forward with gusto or kinesis. That being said there's an undeniable coffeehouse charm at work here and the intimacy and warmth is comforting. Ziman studied film scoring during her college years and the album's many layers and swirling atmospherics reveal that her time in college was well-spent. A brutally honest wordsmith, Ziman writes songs that pattern the innerworkings of the daily struggle and that talent alone is probably what will make her relative for years to come.
Elizabeth ZIman (keys, vocals)
Danny Mload (drums)
Pete Lallish (guitar)
1. Momma's Boy
2. Taller Children
3. Rainiest Day of Summer
4. Race You
5. Apathy
5. The Hang Up
6. Hit the Wall
7. Right Next To You
8. Everybody Knows
9. Complimentary Me
10. Golden Ink
11. Just in Time
The Bird and The Bee, Ingrid Michaelson, Norah Jones, Inara George
Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/elizabethandthecatapult)
Website (http://www.elizabethandthecatapult.com)
Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/thecatapult)