SOUNDTRACK: DEMI LOVATO-Tiny Desk (Home) Concert #191 (April 14, 2021).
I’ve never given much thought to Demi Lovato. All I knew about her was that she also sang a version of “Let It Go” on the Frozen soundtrack and that I liked her version a LOT LESS than the one by Idina Menzel.
But aside from that I didn’t even know if she was all that popular.
Recorded on a sunny spring day in her Los Angeles backyard, Lovato begins with a moving rendition of “Tell Me You Love Me” from her 2017 record of the same name, accompanied by subtle, sparse keys.
Given how over the top “Let It Go” is, I did expect a lot more over-the-topness here. But it is quite subtle. Well, musically it’s subtle. Steven “Styles” Rodriguez plays quiet keys throughout the set. But Lovato is anything but subtle.
She continues her set with the title tracks from her recently-released studio album, Dancing With The Devil…The Art Of Starting Over. On both tracks, Lovato’s voice feels stabilizing and grounding; there’s a sense of clarity and purpose in its power.
The blurb suggests she’s gone through some rough times, but I don’t know about them. I do know that she has managed to feed a squirrel from her hand, so that’s something.
Through it all, her voice is something to behold. Wow, can she ever she hits some really amazing notes–long and lasting and powerful. I like the deep keys that “Styles” adds to the chorus of “Dancing With The Devil,” it adds some nice drama.
[READ: May 3, 2021] A Wiser Girl
Different things can attract a person to a book. In this case, it was the author’s name. I’m not sure why the name Moya Roddy appealed to me, but it did. I’d never heard of her and this short book seemed like an interesting way to get to know her work.
This is the story of Jo (Josephine) Nowd, a Dublin girl who had to escape Dublin and flee to Italy in 1975. The reason that she fled Ireland is twofold, although the primary reason is to escape her ex, a man named Eamonn. The other is because she wants to be an artist and feels that an artistic life is more likely in the land of art than in Dublin.
Jo is a mostly engaging narrator. She has a pretty strong personality. Part of it is directed inward–she has some insecurities brought on by growing up as a poor Irish Catholic girl. But she is also very opinionated, especially about art. For her art is all about the supernatural–primarily the divine–but mostly she doesn’t like art that represents reality, she wants art to transcend reality.
She also has a (justifiable) hatred of the rich. She feels that the poor get the shaft while the rich (especially the English rich) are oblivious to all that they have and all they step on while they get it.
And yet, for all of her insecurities, it’s pretty daring to up and leave your country to move to a place where you do not speak the language and have hardly any money. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 