Music is made up of several components: melody, rhythm, harmony, time
signature, and of course lyrics and human voice in the case of songs. Pop music
is no exception. Fortunately, aspiring pop musicians are often able to make the
grade, and big money, too, with just some of the above components, usually a
couple, when done right. Only legendary musicians excel at several of the
components, like The Beatles, Elton John or Adele, to name three obvious
examples.
اضافة اعلان
To what category does CMAT, the young singer who
hails from Ireland, belong? CMAT is the moniker for Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson.
Her first album was released earlier this year, and
from the outset, with its title that includes a strange yet definitely intended
misspelling, “If my Wife New, I’d be Dead”, she set the tone: humor and irony.
With 16 tracks, all new compositions contributed by CMAT, it is a rather
generous, copious amount of original material, unusually found on one single
album. Last November, the 26-year-old singer from Dublin was nominated for
several international music awards.
The music bears the influence of country songs and
of mainstream pop. Several tracks are built like songs from the 1960s and
1970s, which is not a bad thing at all. For the most, they consist of catchy
tunes, even if they are rather simple and do not constitute anything
revolutionary or innovative. The beat is binary, straight, and easy to follow.
Some pieces are constructed on the pentatonic scale,
the set of five notes (instead of the usual seven) that are frequently found in
Far-Eastern music, in Japan and China for instance. Two of the tracks reminded
me of Katie Melua’s Nine Million Bicycles in Beijing.
Playing the album twice in a row, makes you really
like it, and at the same time makes you wonder what makes it so attractive, for
after all, the music per se, while certainly pleasing the ear, is a bit common.
And then you realize that it is the voice and the singing style, the tone of
CMAT, that makes all the difference. She really sounds like no one else.
Sometime shrieking, sometime soft, often childish
(intentionally, I assume), the style has a strong character. The phrasing is
unique, and the accent a delicious mix of Irish and I something else that I
cannot define.
CMAT debut album can perhaps be qualified as European pop-country with a young flavor, traditional beats and instrumental arrangement, the whole crowned with a high-pitched, beautiful female voice.
I agree with the numbers of plays seen on the audio
streaming platforms like Spotify: that the counts exceed several millions makes
sense; they go to the best two songs: I Don’t Really Care for You and I Wanna
be a Cow-Boy, Baby! Two other tracks deserve kudos: Lonely and Groundhog Day.
CMAT’s debut album can perhaps be qualified as
European pop-country with a young flavor, traditional beats and instrumental
arrangement, the whole crowned with a high-pitched, beautiful female voice.
Again, tradition is a key element here. Listen, for instance, to 2 Wrecked 2
Care: the chords progression and the melody are such that you have the
impression that you have heard the song before if it were not for CMAT voice.
I found this spot-on anonymous review on Metacritics
about CMAT that sums it up very well and that reads: “It’s a rare skill to be
both silly and devastatingly tender, and it’s all here to revel in.”
It will be interesting to follow CMAT’s career and
see what her next move will be, and if she can sustain the momentum. For the
time being, she certainly is a promising pop star.
Jean-Claude Elias is a computer engineer and a classically
trained pianist and guitarist. He has been regularly writing IT articles,
reviewing music albums, and covering concerts for more than 30 years.
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