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Music Review - `Overdue` by Severin Browne (jm)
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Severin Browne – Overdue (click on image to watch video)
30 June 2019
Severin Browne may best be know for his songwriting – first as a staff writer for Motown and later writing for everyone from Twiggy and Thelma Houston, to Pamela Stanley. But as his latest solo effort shows he’s just as comfortable moving into the spotlight himself.
The global pandemic put a temporary halt to the recording of Overdue, but the 10 tracks that make up the record prove to be a solid addition to his growing cannon. The opening track, “Young and Free” is a hint to the themes that follow, songs about looking back on a life well lived. Even on a break-up song like “Leaving You is the Hardest Thing I’ve Known,” Browne strips out all bitterness, keeping love at the center of the songs. His vocal delivery throughout the record is clear and purposeful. There are the occasional weak spots throughout, like on the slow tempo “My Friends are All Around Me,” told from the perspective of a ghost witnessing his own wake, the lyrics come off a little too earnest. But there more than enough good songs here - like the introspective “Sparkling River” or “Miguel and Maria,” about a young family escaping violence in their country and fleeing to American - to make up for the few missteps along the way.
Browne’s deft melding of jazz, folk, pop and country serves as a solid foundation for his lyrics. The themes and music behind Overdue aren’t necessarily experimental or overly complicated, making for a satisfyingly comfortable listen.
John B. Moore has been covering the seemingly disparate, but surprisingly complimentary genres of Americana and punk rock for the past 20 years.
Blurt/New Noise Magazine/InSite Atlanta/NeuFutur Magazine
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