Romi Mayes “Sweet Somethin’ Steady” (Independent 2006)

Canadian singer gives Lucinda a run for her money

Romi’s debut EP showed an awful lot of raw promise, promise that she delivers on her first full-length. The time spent in the studio has given her the time to polish the songs and add elements that were heretofore impossible - the opening ‘Eight More Days’ starts with a straightforward riff and then a huge industrial beat arrives, the oily grey metallic sounds at odds with and complementing the country rock. The studio doesn’t mean that there has to be too much detail; ‘Desperately’ is sparse and spacious supplying the musical tears to go with the burning throat and the broken heart - then in comes the full band to vent the anger that has built up. The extra production adds most to the slower ballads like ‘Let Me Run’ which captures her voice clear and poignant, the backing fulsome but not too much so. The rockier numbers like ‘The Other Dame’ suffer a little in their cleanliness, her vocal raw and suggestive but the guitar though is a polished Cadillac when it needs a beat-up Chevy. The absence of drums from some of the songs gives them a suspended quality, the float in the air unencumbered; ‘Smoke More than I Drink’ is a fine example. The production replaces much Romi’s raw charm with a more sterile beauty - when she marries these two things, she’ll produce a fantastic record.

Date review added:  Monday, January 22, 2007
Reviewer:  David Cowling
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