ETHEREAL TRIP HOP DIVA!:SIANNA LYONS
Sianna Lyons
'Songland'
Produced by Federico Gonzalez
Scimitar Records LKP-22716

Review by Billy Tweedie

Sianna Lyons is a precious rarity. She's one of the few performers
today whose work is both truly
progressive and commercially viable-that she will be a worldwide
superstar and still unable to crack U.S.
radio at this point is a travesty. Though "Songland" can be darker,
moodier and more esoteric than
anything you have heard by say Tori Amos or the superb Kate Bush, the
album kicks off with her best
shot at chart-breaking yet; "Come" is a mystical, sinuous single with
Sianna's sultry voice gliding
over warm synths and the soft pounding of a track, a rich song that
becomes more compelling with each
listen. On "Disappear," she experiments with the story of a little
girl who is too scared to shed her tears
with intriguing results. Also check "Lover" and the ballad "We" with
some of her purest vocals.
"We" rides to the tune of a wonderfully infectious chorus refrain.
Sianna's residence on music's fringes
won't be lasting much longer. One hopes MTV-ever on the lookout for
video stars-won't be solely
responsible for bringing one of the world's most talented (and
beautiful) recording artists to the masses.

In the boldly experimental, ominously lovely "Disappear," the dreamy,
fretless arrangement weds an
uncanny feeling of dread and fear with verbal directness while
displaying a melodic sense that's in peak
form....This experiment is a Masterpiece.

Few female vocalists are as instantly memorable as Sianna Lyons.
Whether following an ebullient pop
rhythm or leading a sparse line, Sianna's girlish, sultry voice is
capable of changing the texture and mood
of a song with a single breathy cry. On "Songland", her debut album is
silky, sexy and totally wonderful
in every context. Sianna (and her producer Federico Gonzalez)
rearranges pop convention to suit her
artistic vision, exploring an intimate range of emotional expression
along the way. I feel that the album
has been centered on eroticism and seduction, but in a more romantic
setting, feeling its way through an
adventurous series of rhythms and melodies like a young couple meeting
for the first time. There are no
set rules, and Sianna enthusiastically mixes schmaltz with chutzpah,
as on "Lover," where dissonant
guitar squalls and an ominous bassline merge with weepy strings, murky
keyboards and emotive vocals.
Even on touching cuts Sianna can't resist mingling background
harmonies and naive yearings with
heart-tugging vocals, atmospheric keyboards and slow, tribal beats.
"Songland" is quite simply a bold,
sizzling triumph.

The lyrics are painfully personal and the way in which Sianna delivers
them is heart wrenching. Her voice ranges from breathy secrets to
almost incensed shouts, expressing words the way you would whisper to
a lover -- or shout at an enemy. The instrumentation reverberates with
the loneliness and universality of the words themselves. Her vox is
feminine and provocative.

Each song tells a familiar story of the woman and her journey. They
all meant something special to
me.....

I can honestly say that I have never heard a more haunting and
poignant song than "Susan". It still brings
tears to my eyes. You must buy the album to witness the power of this
haunted track.

"before I trap you in my lair, take my lion's share, you better hope
this feeling subsides, otherwise...."
These are some lyrics from the wonderful "Otherwise" that is full of
passion and lust for Mr. Right!

Of course, I can try to describe a million songs with one sentence but
it would do none of them justice.
The only way to express the essence of Sianna Lyons is by listening to
her own words.

Pearl Jam's "Black", (the only cover on the album) rips your heart
out, not by the words but by the vox
and pure heartbreak in Sianna's voice.

"Songland" to me has been the most powerful debut album I have heard
in years! The songs have
become a part of me, as her voice sings with yearings of sadness and
joys to the little boy down the
street, broken and alone......not even Tori Amos or Kate Bush can do
that to this degree!
Sianna will thrive as one of music's most enduring, valuable and
cherished artists.

You MUST get this album, you MUST play this album till you know every
lyric on every song!

It is virtually impossible for me to comprehend anyone not
liking...not LOVING, this artist!

Listen to some of the tracks here
http://www.siannalyons.com/listen.html
USE THE ORDER FORM AT THIS LINK to BUY your copy!
http://www.siannalyons.com/taste.html
and visit Sianna at her site
http://www.siannalyons.com
and at Billy's ENTERTAINMENT WORLD
http://billytweedie.com