Frequently Bought Together
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Track Listings
| 1. Ocean and a rock |
| 2. Venn Diagram |
| 3. Sea Song |
| 4. Splishy Splashy |
| 5. I Don't Know |
| 6. Keep It All |
| 7. Courting Blues |
| 8. Pistachio |
| 9. Teeth |
| 10. Lille |
Product Description
Product Description
2009 album from Lisa Hannigan.
Review
Lisa Hannigan's little tiff with Damien Rice worked out rather well for one of the parties concerned. Two years on from her departure as backing singer and sometime instrumentalist for Mr Popularity 2004, Ms Hannigan is revelling in award nominations and international acclaim. As for Mr Rice, well his underperforming second album and three-year disappearance from the new release shelves are now something of an irrelevance.
Put out through her own label, Hoop, Sea Sew is Hannigan's passion project, hand-crafted in just a fortnight. There's definitely an unashamed quaintness to the album, with self-stitched artwork and old friends drafted in from the Rice days to help out on instrumentation. I Don't Know has a similar coy seductiveness to that other Mercury nominee, the terminally underrated Kathryn Williams, but neither have deserved to be unjustly dubbed the 'token folkie' on the shortlist. There is nothing token about tracks like Keep It All, a sinisterly executed, contemporary tale of infatuation which opens with a rock drum solo definitely not typical of a standard folk offering.
Single Lille is clearly an example of what caused a friend to coin the term 'Plink Plonk Rock' to describe Hannigan's style, sounding like an ambitious Swiss clock with a trouping parade of mechanical figures that meet in the middle at the top of each hour.
As you'd expect from the title, water references abound: Splishy Splashy mimics the rhythm of the tide in its vocals and gentle acoustic guitar, while Ocean And A Rock shares a beautiful motif among strings, brass and keys. Sea Song is the standout track, faintly Latin with pleasingly warm lyrics: ''He's like the wishful thinking in my life/ He's like the wine on the weekend''.
Mercury nominations and the praise of US chat show hosts aside, Lisa Hannigan seems to have an overflowing idea bank with which to go forth and flourish. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Mr Rice. --Keira Burgess
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Lisa Hannigan's debut album "Sea Sew" is an charming confection although its difficult to see why adding live versions of songs on the original "Sea Sew" makes this record a "Deluxe" version. I would have liked to see some other new material from the excellent Lisa Hannigan or at least some of the cover versions she has recorded such as Joni Mitchell's "Willy" or Roy Orbison's "Love hurts" Yet to be fair the live versions are generally solid and if the key purpose is to remind you what a little gem this album is then they serve their purpose. Lisa Hannigan was as pivotal to "O" as Damien Rice's guitar. The "Blowers daughter" is in my mind as much her song as his and her contribution to the some of the best songs on "9" was immense.
"Sea Sew" has a quiet but huge following and its is delicious album packed with delightful and precious songs like "Ocean and Rock", "I don't Know", "Lille", the truly gorgeous "Venn diagram" and the harder "Sea Song". The album manages to skilfully blend beauty with whimsy without degenerating into sentimentality or tweeness. The most ample demonstration of this is in the albums towering highlight "Teeth" where Hannigan spits out the lyric and the raw emotion erupts in this song particularly on the repeated chorus where she states "And I had a swing/When my salt was my own/I'd my teeth bared for battle/Till love lost made me dull". It is brilliant songwriting.
Granted when viewed in its totality "Sea Sew" is lighter than anything she has done with Damien Rice and yet I have to say I listen to it much more than "9". Along with Laura Marling and Theo Gilmore she is proof of an amazing renaissance of British/Irish female singer songwriters. More importantly she is ample evidence that the judges of the Mercury Prize maintain an impeccable record as the most consistent bunch of tone deaf idiots currently listening to modern music.
"Sea Sew" has a quiet but huge following and its is delicious album packed with delightful and precious songs like "Ocean and Rock", "I don't Know", "Lille", the truly gorgeous "Venn diagram" and the harder "Sea Song". The album manages to skilfully blend beauty with whimsy without degenerating into sentimentality or tweeness. The most ample demonstration of this is in the albums towering highlight "Teeth" where Hannigan spits out the lyric and the raw emotion erupts in this song particularly on the repeated chorus where she states "And I had a swing/When my salt was my own/I'd my teeth bared for battle/Till love lost made me dull". It is brilliant songwriting.
Granted when viewed in its totality "Sea Sew" is lighter than anything she has done with Damien Rice and yet I have to say I listen to it much more than "9". Along with Laura Marling and Theo Gilmore she is proof of an amazing renaissance of British/Irish female singer songwriters. More importantly she is ample evidence that the judges of the Mercury Prize maintain an impeccable record as the most consistent bunch of tone deaf idiots currently listening to modern music.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've listened Sea Sew driven by the preferences of customers who have bought cd of Florence and the Machine, Red House Painters, John Martyn, Jackie Leven, and other acustic - folk rock musicians.
I think that this debut is really a little precious jewel that you learn to appreciate after few listenings, because the arrangements are excellent bun not immediate.
A lot of beautiful passages are "hidden" at the first listenings. The tone is calm, relaxed, and the musicians never try to use special effects to catch the attention preferring to mantain a balance in the execution.
I give the album 4 stars, it means a excellent album, because 5 stars in my scale of value is a masterpiece.
Sea Sew is not a masterpiece, it's "only" one of the best album of 2008, probably one of the most understimated.
I hope that Lisa Hannigan could produce a masterpiece the next time.
I think that this debut is really a little precious jewel that you learn to appreciate after few listenings, because the arrangements are excellent bun not immediate.
A lot of beautiful passages are "hidden" at the first listenings. The tone is calm, relaxed, and the musicians never try to use special effects to catch the attention preferring to mantain a balance in the execution.
I give the album 4 stars, it means a excellent album, because 5 stars in my scale of value is a masterpiece.
Sea Sew is not a masterpiece, it's "only" one of the best album of 2008, probably one of the most understimated.
I hope that Lisa Hannigan could produce a masterpiece the next time.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By littlegreen
Format:Audio CD
I want to call this album beautiful and calming and serene, but if I do, then more people may hear the voice and maybe she'll become a world superstar and then we won't be able to go to the smaller venues and listen to the more powerful and beautiful voice than that which comes over on the record.
I want to be able to say I've listened to this album a million times, but only because it's stuck in the cd player in the car....and NOT because I've had a hard day at work and this music calms me down. Oh no!
Buy and listen to this album at your peril. It does not contain any parental warnings on it's cover which, by the way, made me want to re-acquaint myself with knitting- that in itself is a warning.
This record contains only good music. Be aware.
I want to be able to say I've listened to this album a million times, but only because it's stuck in the cd player in the car....and NOT because I've had a hard day at work and this music calms me down. Oh no!
Buy and listen to this album at your peril. It does not contain any parental warnings on it's cover which, by the way, made me want to re-acquaint myself with knitting- that in itself is a warning.
This record contains only good music. Be aware.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 38 reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Top Class Artist
Lisa Hannigan has a very smooth and balanced tone and brings the lyrics to life in her songs. Highly recommended.
Published 3 months ago by Zakman
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great album
There isn't a duff track on this album. Loved it on first hearing and can't stop playing it. Buy it!
Published 3 months ago by WW Stow
5.0 out of 5 stars
post concert purchase
she supported Richard Hawley, Manchester University. we were impressed by her variety of musical talent. Album is superb excellent quality.
Published 5 months ago by sue
5.0 out of 5 stars
Glorious
Beautiful voice
Theraputic... the music seems to sway... happy sounds
-Helps me sleep at night :)
Money well spent, I'll be investing in another album og Lisas... Read more
Theraputic... the music seems to sway... happy sounds
-Helps me sleep at night :)
Money well spent, I'll be investing in another album og Lisas... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Becky
5.0 out of 5 stars
this isn't status quo
seriously though, this is a beautiful album, what a singer, miles ahead of all those wannabe tramps we are continually exposed to.
Published 6 months ago by G. A. Nelson
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful and haunting voice
Saw Lisa and her band supporting Richard hawley at brixton academy loved them which inspired me to buy her albums I love them too.
Published 6 months ago by Biddy Bardot
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful
This is one of my favourite CD's, Lisa has such a haunting voice and this is such a lovely collection of songs.
Published 9 months ago by Phantom1306
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing
Simply amazing. A must buy. Peaceful, lyrically beautiful. Great debut album.
I have seen her multiple times live also and she is just an amazing singer. Read more
I have seen her multiple times live also and she is just an amazing singer. Read more
Published 10 months ago by JF
5.0 out of 5 stars
A new fan
I wasn't familiar with Lisa Hannigan's music but got this CD for my husband for Christmas and am now defnitely going to be adding it to my 'music to sing along to in the car'... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Candycanandco
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lisa Hannigan goes solo
For me, this was the best debut album album of 2009. Sweet, delicate, addictive.
I loved Lisa's voice when collaborating with Damien Rice (especially in "9 crimes"), and here... Read more
I loved Lisa's voice when collaborating with Damien Rice (especially in "9 crimes"), and here... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Etta
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
![[Start the discussion]](http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/02/x-locale/communities/discussion_boards/start-new-discussion-sec._V192198663_.gif){kind=small}
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
