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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Watershed is the first major project from celebrated Canadian chanteuse k.d. lang since 2004's Hymns of the 49th Parallel. Where Hymns explored the music of fellow Canadians such as Ron Sexsmith, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, Watershed represents the first set of original songs from lang in around eight years. Self-produced and arranged by musicians she has worked with a lot in the past, the most striking aspect of the album is its intimate, homely feel. Adding to the cozy ambience is the fact that Watershed brings most of lang's musical passions and influences--jazz, country, folk, bossa nova--under one roof, lending the project a dreamy, mellifluous coherence. But if the musical landscape is mellow and easy to traverse, Lang's lyrics can be less comfortable. Using her laid-back, often ethereal arrangements as sugar-candied coating for thornier topics, the singer serenades with stories of broken love, occasionally harsh self-analysis and the obligatory forays into existential angst. These contrastive elements only serve to make the album stronger, adding emotional weight to the airless arrangements of "Once in a While," and the delicate "Close Your Eyes," and conjuring up images of beauty on the string-laden "I Dream of Spring," and the wonderfully lazy "Sunday". Intelligent, mature and sophisticated, Watershed is the kind of perfect pop album it's difficult not to fall in love with immediately and forever. --Paul Sullivan
Review
It's funny to think that k.d. lang began her career as a country artist. The contradiction of an openly gay, feminist, animal-rights activist singer-songwriter choosing a famously reactionary genre in which to express herself was startling. Yet such contradictions hardly mattered at the time in the face of her fabulous talent, and above all, the sound of her majestic voice. However, lang long ago moved from Patsy Cline-informed torch and twang to a highly original blend of country, blues and jazz. But as she has explored further, the music has often become more muted, more introverted and, at times, a little chilly. Above all, the sense of fun has sometimes been hard to discern amidst the swooning strings and sweeping melodies.
Watershed, her first album of original material since the exceptional pop sheen of 2000's Invincible Summer, does little to dispel this feeling. Encouragingly, I Dream Of Spring opens with a very contemporary African sound. But then both the song and the album seamlessly move into the lush yet plaintive soundscapes she's been ranging across for the past fifteen years. However beautifully crafted and achingly performed this is, it's unlikely to win over many new converts.
A new k.d. lang album is no small thing, however. And on its own terms, Watershed - the title of which perhaps refers as much to the fact that this work is her first self-production as it does any more personal turning point - is an affecting account of endings and the hope for renewal. She may have softened her edges yet the album covers all of her bases from country ballads to dusky jazz and does it with the confidence you'd expect of an artist as comfortable with her own abilities.
Ultimately, at 46 it seems that k.d. lang is both happy and still creative, even if she could do with some nudging out of her comfort zone. In the end, this is a great album to cheer up the end of Winter; as beguiling and seductive as a dream, from which the subtleties and complexities are only slowly revealed. --Tim Nelson
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
An album of superb quality - the vocals, songs, production and lyrics (I think Supertad may have been listening to a Kate Nash album by mistake?) are all without exception, top notch.
Up there with anything she's done before..and could quite possibly be her finest work to date. Wonderful
Up there with anything she's done before..and could quite possibly be her finest work to date. Wonderful
27 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
k.d's new album is beautiful. The songs are what she does best, simple, heartfelt, melodic, and sung with a voice smooth as honey and aching with emotion and nuance. "I Dream of Spring" is gorgeous and ever so slightly reminiscent of Leonard Cohen, and the layered vocals on the chorus send a shiver down my back... "Close Your Eyes" may be the most sensous vocal she has recorded since Wash Me Clean back on the Ingenue album..... "Flame of the Uninspired" is as beautiful as it gets.... Some of the songs are lyrically very downbeat, songs like "Thread" and "Upstream" are self-critical and full of sadness and regret...others like "Sunday" and "Coming Home" are more optimistic and uplifting.... but if k.d is having a mid-life crisis, then it's the warmest and most soulful one you'll ever hear!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
If you're like me and have never paid any interest to KD Lang before now and have not heard any of her stuff except 'Constant Craving', then read on. I stumbled upon this album a couple of months after it had been released. As usual, I searched YouTube for any tracks on there to get a first impression and to see if I wanted to investigate further. I also watched a recent interview with KD, interspersed with tracks from Watershed. I heard 'I Dream Of Spring' and really liked it. I thought I'd download the full album and give it a listen.
I love it! It is full of delicate acoustic guitars and beautiful strings (but not overbearing), as well as soft percussion. The best thing though, is KD's voice. It is some of the most sensual singing I have ever heard. The lyrics and the general feel is a combination of yearning melancholy and comforting worldliness. The album has cohesion, but you can also play individual songs on their own. It is brilliant.
I love it! It is full of delicate acoustic guitars and beautiful strings (but not overbearing), as well as soft percussion. The best thing though, is KD's voice. It is some of the most sensual singing I have ever heard. The lyrics and the general feel is a combination of yearning melancholy and comforting worldliness. The album has cohesion, but you can also play individual songs on their own. It is brilliant.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Laid back, late night listening.
kd returns after a long gap with a new set of originals. Not as immediate as most of her work the album repays repeated listening with a fine selection of sophisticated music that... Read more
Published on 24 Feb 2010 by Fergal Woods
A return to great form
This album rather passed me by, as it doesn't seem to have received much attention. I can't imagine why - it's a return to the form of lang's great songs such as Summerfling and... Read more
Published on 20 Mar 2009 by Bismaquer
Watershed
A Beautiful album. Very calm, peaceful & melancholic. Great vocals and backing music. Almost all of the tracks are first rate and can be listened to again and again
Published on 4 Dec 2008 by William Rendle
Watershed
From start to finish this is an exceptional cd. A truly sultry voice, reminicent of Rita Coolidge from years ago. Read more
Published on 6 Sep 2008 by The Duchess
Strong sound, weakish songs
There's a lot to like about this album. kd's voice is beyond reproach, and she keeps things smooth and restrained throughout, which I like, never approaching the 'Constant Wailing'... Read more
Published on 7 Aug 2008 by A. Butterfield
A Watershed that leads nowhere
This is the first LP by K D Lang that I have bought. Indeed, I was not familiar with her until very recently as a result of the publicity surrounding the release of Watershed. Read more
Published on 26 May 2008 by Herman Norford
Classic KD Lang.
Just listened to Watershed for the first time today. This is a stunningly good album. Life is too short to be without it.
Published on 9 April 2008 by Dogtooth
Great voice, shame about the rest
As a long-time kd fan, I was eagerly anticipating this album. What a letdown! These songs are hard to like. Read more
Published on 19 Feb 2008 by Supertad
Disappointed
I am a real fan of all k.d.lang's albums and eagerly anticipated this new album to the point of pre-ordering it. Read more
Published on 3 Feb 2008 by Melly
Gorgeous voice wonderful new CD
Cards on the table.....I love KD she is the best female singer in the world. She was fantastic live in London last week....what a voice totally perfect. Read more
Published on 2 Feb 2008 by Ella
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