This is likely the first time I review an album, before its publishing date, even though it has been published alread. Sounds weird? Celeigh Cardinal’s Stories from a Downtown Apartment has been published on 30th May 2019 in her home country Canada. As the album received some merits, the record is now also published in Europe and will be released on 17th April 2020.
Celeigh Cardinal – About The Artist
Celeigh Cardinal is an independent artist, who is performing a mixture of folk and soul songs. Her bio claims 17 years of stage appearance. Cardinal had her first EP in 2011 already, but her breakthrough was her 2017 full-length debut album Everything and Nothing at All, which made her Western Canada’s Indigenous Artist of the Year in 2018. The album was also nominated for the best pop album. In 2019, she released Stories from a Downtown Apartment, which her Facebook account even claims to be an EP.
Celeigh Cardinal – Stories from a Downtown Apartment – Track by Track
The album covers eight songs with a 33 minute playtime.
1. The Devil Is a Blue-Eyed Man
Folk and Soul? The first seconds of The Devil Is A Blue-Eyed Man already give a lot of soul. The album starts with 3:40 minutes of powerful, intense music entertainment. Great!
2. Song by the Supermoon
Song by the Supermoon is slower, also having not that much of a touch of soul music. A song, which relaxes me and makes me enjoy the story of the moon guiding her home:
I’m never lost in all these places
Where I go, I find traces
The darkest sky with a super moon light
Lights my way through the night
It takes me home
3. When All Is Said and Done
Guitars, rhythm – the third track of the album has another very different character. To me one of the best songs of the album, just because it is so catching and intense. It is also a nice genre-mix. God one.
4. I Don’t Want to Know You Anymore
Out of the ballad songs, I feel that this is the best song of the album. Wow, so catching, such a good melody and song structure – you just don’t get that out of your head.
5. Do You Know?
This track has much more of Celeigh Cardinal powerful soul voice again. Guitars give the song additional boost in the interlude and thereafter. Really nice songwriting.
6. There Are Some Things We Will Never Do
There are some things that we will never stop fighting about
But that’s ok cause honey we barely even shout
And if we’re on the same side honey, we knock them all out
There are some things that we will never stop fighting about
This slow track is a beautiful love letter. I have to admit that I enjoy the lyrics more than the melodies for that one, but it is a very solid track overall.
7. Tumbleweed
These 5:41 minutes turn into an epic track. Honestly, at the beginning of Tumbleweed, I even felt a bit bored and was tempted to skip the track – but it is an amazing dramatic plot and is definitely not a boring one.
8. Loving Is Letting Go
Loving Is Letting Go is just the vocals and an acoustic guitar – the track focuses on Cardinal’s voice, which is impressing that much in this final track of the album.
Celeigh Cardinal – Stories from a Downtown Apartment – Spotify:
Here is the Spotify widget to listen to the album:
Celeigh Cardinal – Stories from a Downtown Apartment – My View
First of all, this album makes me recommend you to visit Celeigh’s tour (if happening due to Covid-19, see below). I feel that this voice will blow you away live on stage, especially in a comparably intimate atmosphere. The album illustrates her skills very well. I would love to have one, two more songs (though the playing time is fine due to the longer song durations) and maybe one song, which is a bit more on the powerful side. Still, the album offers some really nice folk-soul-roots pop. If you like the genre, you have to listen into Stories from a Downtown Apartment. I recommend all others to give it a try, definitely, as well.
Celeigh Cardinal – Tour 2020
Not too surprisingly, the 2020 Celeigh Cardinal Tour has been postponed to 2021 due to Covid-19.
Greywood Records
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Postings about Canada
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