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THE REVIEW
The smooth jazz genre in its English form is not dead; in fact, it's doing quite well. Listening to this album by Beth Orton, it seems she has absorbed some folk elements and shaken them up with a bit of electronics and a sprinkle of trip hop to offer us about ten pleasant and non-trivial songs. Behind the production is the skilled hand of Ben Watt, the guitarist from Everything But The Girl, who is directly responsible for a couple of the most beautiful tracks - "Anywhere" and "Daybreaker" - as well as the final "Thinking About Tomorrow". Certainly, the folk inspiration has not been lost, here found in the central part of the album with "Carmella"; "God Song" which gives us Emmylou Harris in a counterpoint, and "This One’s Gonna Bruise" penned by Ryan Adams. It's a pity that the album starts with the somewhat dull triptych of "Paris Train"; "Concrete Sky" (guest vocalist, Ryan Adams) and "Mount Washington" and doesn't have a leading track to truly be memorable. The cover photos are adequately melancholic and nothing special, while I found it irritating that the booklet texts were laid out horizontally without any breaks for four pages. In short, it's folktronica music as someone has called it (though the term is rather ugly) "that doesn't hurt," but certainly not indispensable.
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Summary by Bot
Beth Orton's Daybreaker offers a pleasant mix of folk, electronic, and trip hop elements under Ben Watt's production. The album features notable collaborations but lacks a standout lead track. While the folktronica style is tasteful, the album isn’t essential listening. Packaging issues slightly detract from the experience.Tracklist Lyrics Videos
Beth Orton
Beth Orton is an English singer-songwriter from Norwich known for blending folk songwriting with electronic textures, a style often dubbed folktronica. Early collaborations with William Orbit and the Chemical Brothers preceded her breakthrough with Trailer Park (1996) and Central Reservation (1999). She received Mercury Prize nominations for both albums and won the BRIT Award for Best British Female Solo Artist in 2000, later releasing Daybreaker, Comfort of Strangers, Sugaring Season, Kidsticks, and Weather Alive.04 Reviews
Other reviews
By samterra
Beth Orton's voice has something chemical in the notes, like a gentle and imperceptible current that unknowingly leads you adrift.
She will guide us through the saddest and most tormented paths and the morning walks; we understand that we will never abandon our siren.
