Amateurs. Laura Jean

Laura Jean is from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia but I would very probably not have heard of her had not the Flying Nun record store news letter have praised her highly. The description was so accurate that I bought the album on Bandcamp last Friday without having heard more than half of the songs.

Amateurs is her first album since 2018, but all before had passed me by as you'll have surmised from the above. Amateurs is an album with a few faces. There's the indie, mildly rocking singer and there's a singer-songwriter who allows a truckload of strings in to produce an alternative kind of pop song or ballad, with enough hints at folk as well. This is a varied album in other words.

All this puts Laura Jean somewhere between modern singers like Aldous Harding and Amber Arcade's Annelotte van der Graaf. Without doubt she fits in qualitywise as well. This may sound like a position that many singer-songwriters reach for, but not one that is easy to arrive at. With Amateurs Laura Jean has set a giant step in that direction. All but amateurish, I'd add. At the same time she reaches way beyond the 2010s and 20s. There's a little Joni Mitchell and Kate Bush in this album as well. And to think that this is an album I would probably never have heard had it not been for that newsletter keeping me informed mostly about New Zealand releases.

Can a violin rock? Many rockbands have proven it can, but just listen to the intro of 'Too Much To Do'. These strings not only rock but also will make people dance. All it takes is a strong, drummed dance beat underneath them and it all falls into place. Laura Jean puts herself on par with Aldous Harding's best tracks here. 'Too Much To Do' is showing the world what creating modern music is all about.

Amateurs is a very varied album. Among the ten songs are a few indie rockers and true, alternative ballads around a piano and strings. Violins and a cello set the mood with the singer. Without being overly present, the strings (and at times a fretless bass, another beautiful addition) spread out a luscious arrangement over the strict piano chords and notes of 'Market On The Sand'. In a song like 'Pauly' she reaches further and deeper and she obviously has found what she was looking for.

With Amateurs Laura Jean has made an album that offers its listeners a few experiences. She starts with going for the mind and legs. Slowly but surely she moves towards the heart, capturing me on both levels. The experienced listener will recognise hints at music that came before but also is offered a new album of very high quality. I am getting more and more convinced that 2022 is turning out to become an exceptional year in music. Laura Jean's Amateurs is one of the albums that is contributing in a very positive way.

Wout de Natris

You can listen to and order Amateurs here:

https://laurajeanmusic.bandcamp.com/album/amateurs