Runaway Favorite: One of the Best Albums of 2003
Written: Nov 13 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Incredible songwriting and vocals...
Cons: ...
The Bottom Line: Professor and Maryann have something very, very special with their fourth album.
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| lambchops's Full Review: Runaway Favorite - Professor and Maryann Movies |
After about a decade in the industry, Professor and Maryann finally have gotten the freedom to record exactly what it is they want. Most recent release Runaway Favorite (2003) is a sparse, emotional, and gorgeous album. It seems that press and fans agree on one thing…Professor and Maryann makes for great music—hands down some of the most wonderful stuff you’ve never heard.
Ken Rockwood (guitars and songwriting) and Danielle Brancaccio (vocals) hail from Staten Island. After just three gigs, the duo scored a record deal with Bar/None in the early 1990’s. Soon thereafter, they recorded their first album for the company. Fairy Tale found a home on shelves beginning in January 1994. From this point on, the duo managed to receive resoundingly positive reviews and earned a fervent underground fan-base. The recordings continued in similar fashion, but as the years passed the band admits that the music that was made wasn’t necessarily of their choosing or their liking. But in any case both Lead Us Not in to Penn Station (1996) and Professor and Maryann (2001) received positive reviews.
Professor and Maryann’s newest release, Runaway Favorite, is a gem—albeit a dusky amber topaz or a peridot—beautiful and wonderful, but also not at all usual. Wielding an emotional, intelligent, and mature sound the duo (with a little help from some friends) opens their fourth album with a jaunty, swaggering style that is only acceptable in truly talented acts. Brancaccio’s voice is the centerpiece here…she seductively croons. But the words come to her easily. Her singing isn’t forced or structured. And it fits perfectly with her partner Rockwood’s arrangements.
The jazzy pop melodies are challenging, but not so much so as to lack entertainment value. Brancaccio sings with a unique verve that is rarely found in music. From start to end, the songs contained on Runaway Favorite are consistently great. Whisper To Me and Thick As Thieves are wondrous with the latter giving the usually voiceless Rockwood to shine. His voice is surprisingly perfect and the duet is incredible. This ability for the band to seamlessly move from one movement and arrangement to the next is what makes this album so incredibly strong.
Electric Metropolis picks up the pace a hair with lightly plucked guitars and a catchy, chipper melody. Closing my eyes, I am swept to a land where my cares are moot and where sunshine is only slightly obscured by black thunderheads. Roof of the World is theatric and evocative (although not at all outrageous)—not to mention one of the most perfect songs on the album. The duo tell a story in their song; a style that they’ve explored on previous outings. With the light guitar paired with classical strings, the song is highly textured and stylized.
The album can’t get better as it continues, but it does manage to further dig a hole into my psyche. Chariot is a surrealistic love story. Strange, yet absolutely appealing at the same time, Professor and Maryann can do no wrong. Wish Symphony is a magical, dreamy romp while World of Clowns turns to cabaret for influence. This theatrical, cabaret style is obscured in many of the other songs but here it is brought to the forefront for a few moments before Rockwood breaks in with his wispy vocals and carnival-esque strut.
Every Other Minute is a sparsely instrumented folk-pop ballad. The fact that Brancaccio’s throaty purr needs little musical support lends itself well to the kind of music she and Rockwood so successfully make. The smattering cello and light percussion throughout just further texturize the already rich song. Ordinary Girl incorporates banjos into the upbeat, catchy song. There’s little question in my mind that this is the easiest song to appreciate.
Wrapping things up, Ten Tubas is an alternative kind of ode to Christmas. Everything from light banjos to sleigh bells to cello make the song something so very special I can’t even properly express my indebtedness to Professor and Maryann. Even the “drummer boy” snare drum and children’s choir prove truly enlightening. This duo is one of only a few acts that could ever get away with wrapping an album up in this manner.
Professor and Maryann have something very special here. Maybe, if we as listeners are lucky, there are five albums of this caliber released annually. This is one of ‘em for 2003. Runaway Favorite is a “must own” for fans of acts like Rufus Wainwright, Grant-Lee Phillips, Polyphonic Spree, and other adventurous pop/rock/cabaret/jazz examples.
Just get it.
Rating: 5/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Bible and a Gun
02. Whisper to Me
03. Thick as Thieves
04. Electric Metropolis
05. Roof of the World
06. Chariot
07. Wish Symphony
08. World of Clowns
09. Every Other Minute
10. Ordinary Girl
11. Ten Tubas
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Runaway Favorite can be purchased at the following sites:
http://www.cdbaby.com
http://www.professorandmaryann.com
Recommended:
Yes
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lambchops
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Location: Metro Detroit, Michigan
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