Seasons of My Soul (2010)

A debut album ten years in the making, Rumer’s Seasons of My Soul reaps amply from such dedication and hard work.

Rumer’s lyrics are emotive and her voice is rich, and within the mellow arrangements, they find a solid base from which to bounce off. Apart from the cover songs, she has written or co-written all the songs in the album, and each carries a sense of honesty and things-laid-bare quality that draws you closer to her music.

The melodies are romantic and gorgeous, and the album has a comforting, old-fashioned vibe that is familiar, yet not overdone. Of course, it also hasn’t hurt to have composer Steve Brown as producer, and Burt Bacharach and Jools Holland as fans.

Rumer’s voice and sound has been compared to Carole King and Karen Carpenter. It’s a refreshing sound in an age when most singers seem to believe the higher the note they hit, the better their music will be. This is no shriek fest; rather it’s a quiet but steady assertion of a lingering voice that’ll come back to you of an autumnal evening.

Born Sarah Joyce, in Pakistan, Rumer discovered music through her family, who used to write and perform their own songs for fun, at the expatriate colony in which they lived. One of her brothers gave her a guitar – the first one she owned, which she later used to write the songs of Seasons of My Soul.

Her stage name was inspired by Margaret Rumer Godden, an English author, who grew up in colonial India. May be the expat life in common hit a chord within the singer. The album is autobiographical and rich with material drawn from her own, rather unconventional, life. One after another, a series of events overtook her: a move to the UK that left her feeling alienated and displaced, her parents’ separation and the discovery that her biological father was someone else.

Driven to a life of aimless wandering, punctuated by art studies and a stint with indie rock band La Honda, more painful news was on the way – her mother had breast cancer. Rumer moved into a caravan to look after her mother, whose eventual death was a severe blow to the singer. Following a breakdown, she joined a commune, in which she experienced a sense of freedom and escape, not felt since life in Pakistan. It also turned out to be a turning point that gave her the courage to aspire to her dream, and instilled confidence to stay committed to its pursuit.

All this is reflected in the songs of Seasons of My Soul. This is not to say the album is ridden with teary-eyed mish-mash; rather it explores complex feelings of sorrow, and what you must go through to find the strength to overcome it. It takes a long look at love, and doesn’t want to test the fragility within. It takes fragments out of everyday life and weaves the bigger questions around them.

“Slow” is the first single to be released from the album, and offers up a caution about rushing things in a new relationship. “Healer” is her way of coming to terms with her mother’s death. “Blackbird” is an uplifting song that looks to the future, while “Aretha” is a tribute to those artists who sustain us in our darkest hours.

There are three cover versions of old favourites: “Goodbye Girl” originally done by David Gates of Bread fame; the theme song from Tootsie, titled “It might be you” by Stephen Bishop; and “Alfie,” covered by the likes of Cher, Cilla Black and Dionne Warwick. She does ample justice to each, and brings a more soulful tone to the songs.  

Seasons of My Soul is beautiful music that goes easy on the ear, but a little harder on the heart. It’s intimate and sophisticated; and you will keep coming back to it. For more about Rumer and her music, visit http://www.rumer.co.uk/

Here’s the official video (international version) for “Slow,” one of my favourites.

Source: rumerofficial © 2010 WMG

Images © 2010 Warner Music UK Limited