Lisa Hannigan started her recording career as a ghost. She hovered around the edges of songs written and performed by one of Ireland's most promising young stars, Damien Rice, haunting his music with her spooky, wounded moans.
Hannigan made the ideal companion for Rice, who's not exactly a party animal himself. She even sang the first and last lines on Rice's latest CD (late 2006's "9"), framing his sullen phrases with her own broken cries.
Yet anyone entranced by Hannigan's sound had to eventually wonder: Could a singer who merely roamed the edges of a song ever hold its center? Could a cameo artist become a star?
Hannigan probably had to pose the question to herself sooner, and more urgently, than she would have wanted. Two years ago, Rice fired her from his band without warning and with little explanation - at least not one Hannigan has offered to the press.
Now she's making the case for her own talents on her solo debut, "Sea Sew." Happily, it not only proves Hannigan worthy of the star slot, it places her firmly in the company of a whole clique of emerging young Irish acts, from the Frames to the Thrills to Bell X1 to a project called Cake Sale, which involves members of all three.
Listeners drawn to Rice's hesitant, acoustic ballads won't be disappointed by anything on Hannigan's debut. She's still singing in hushed tones, though in far more varied ones than Rice's music allowed. In fact, Hannigan's music shows how many different ways a person can sing softly.
In "I Don't Know," her voice has an expectant quality, with a hint of flirtation. In "Ocean and a Rock" there's great yearning in her long, lingering phrases, while for "Keep It All" she sings into her chest to create a sense of mystery.
The music - all originals, save a take on Bert Jansch's "Courting Blues" - also involves more instrumentation than Rice's. But it remains understated and uncluttered. Hannigan proves herself a poetic lyricist, making eager use of Ireland's literary bent for alliteration and onomatopoeia (see "Splishy Splashy," "Sea Song"). Even so, Hannigan's words manage to convey clear meaning.
She writes mainly encouraging and romantic songs, in contrast to Rice's somber broods. In "Ocean and a Rock" Hannigan pledges eternal allegiance to a long-distance lover, while in "I Don't Know" she composes a virtual personal ad of a song, fired by more anticipation than wariness, which shows the durability of her hope. But here's the best news: Hannigan hasn't just crawled out of Rice's shadow so she can imitate him. Instead she gave his introverted sound her own concentrated allure.
source : Daily News
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