"I know the score, I've heard it all before..."

“There’s always someone, somewhere with a big nose who knows… and who trips you up and laughs when you fall. (S.P. Morrissey)

The problem with being compared to a band, is that you rarely live up to the comparison. The problem with emulating a band, is that you end up sounding like a cheap imitation. The problem with reviewing a band who is compared to and emulates bands you LOVE, is that you set your standards way too high.

Case in Point: Elizabeth Harper's self-titled album is compared to the Sundays and The Smiths… pretty big shoes to fill if you ask me! A better comparison would have been Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s doing a Morrissey impression of a Sundays song!

Seriously though… musically speaking there are some nice moments. The band have obviously studied at the “SMITHSonian” school of music. The music will take you back to the mellower moments of the Smiths ala “Reel Around The Fountain” (Low Tide) at times, whilst Ms. Harper does her best “ah-ha-ha” Morrissey imitation (Trouble In The Palace).

Other songs she whisps along softly like Harriet Wheeler of The Sundays (Rock Like a Baby, Clean Cut) but ends up sounding more like Joni Mitchell (Seawater Lullaby, Accidental Flirt) or Natalie Merchant (Turn Down Your Bed, Charles Bridge).

The more upbeat songs finds the whispiness suddenly disappear and Harper becomes Karen O/ Chrissie Hynde (same person?!) covering Smiths tunes complete with This Charming Man yipes! (Parlor Window, Don Juan)

It’s too bad really. The band are actually quite good, Elizabeth Harper just tends to over-sing a bit, instead of letting the music do its part.

You get the feeling that she is still finding her voice, and when/if she does find it, she might look back on this album with a mixture of pride and embarrassment… as if it were a childhood art project or something!