1000 Forms of Fear by Sia
Sia recently released her sixth album 1000 Forms of Fear featuring Top 20 hit “Chandelier”, her first charting single as a lead artist in the United States in her 17 year career. Very similar to the previous album We Are Born, 1000 Forms of Fear clearly demonstrates that Sia is in her prime as both a lyricist and a vocalist. She has one of the most powerful voices in music, if not the most powerful voice if we consider an artist’s overall voice to be composed of both their vocals and their lyrical voice.
Take for example the closing track “Dressed in Black”, Sia speaks to an unnamed individual who helped her overcome a rough moment in her life when she was “dressed in black”, a possible reference to depression which Sia has suffered from before. What makes this song so unique lyrically is that the song is more of a thank you letter than it is, say, a love letter. The word “love” is not even mentioned in the song nor do any of the lyrics suggest a romantic connection between Sia and the individual which could mean that the individual was a family member, a close friend, a pet, or possibly her fans.
Sia’s vocals on the song are nothing less than amazing, especially the bridge forward which begins at 3:10. And there reaches a point where she abandons the chorus and all you hear are layers of Sia's vocals which are not harmonized but they still work together with the production of the song so that you feel her emotions in a way that an additional verse might not have done.
Sia’s gift is that she can pen a song that captures a human feeling or experience and amplify it with assistance from her vocals, all in a way that anyone who takes the time to listen to her music can find her messages very relatable. While not topping the greatness that is We Are Born, 1000 Forms of Fear is just as full of great tracks where her gift can be heard: "Straight for the Knife", “Free the Animal”, and “Cellophane”, a track reminiscent of one of Sia’s earlier classics "Breathe Me" with a modern Sia edge.
1000 Forms of Fear shines in the sea of 2014 album release mediocrity. Well-known to the indie crowd for her characteristic mumbles and piercing vocals, Sia returns with a Pop twist to her 6th studio album release. While this isn't the perky breasts chanteuse's first venture into Pop, cue We Are Born (2010), this album sits much more comfortably in the Mainstream than previous releases. Sia attempts to straddle the striking divide between her work as a solo artist and her songwriting for Mainstream juggernauts. Pop fans familiar with her Guetta collaborations (Titanium, She Wolf), Diamonds and the ilk should feel right at home while listening to the majority of 1000 Forms of Fear. Old fans will find solace in tracks like Straight For The Knife and Hostage.
Despite her, "eye for the minor key", a good portion of the tracks are in the major key. These tracks in tandem with the oddly uptempo nature of the album results in quite the uplifting feeling, in contrast with the dark, hurting lyrics above the production. With album highlights like Free the Animal, Dressed in Black and Elastic Heart, it is clear that many will still flock to her hoping for a powerful, emotional tune for their own album. Sia has set the course for a prosperous career in the Music Industry.
. . .The Aussie songwriter's 2014 release fails to leave an impact.
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Sia has the entire world talking about her after releasing what is perhaps a contender for the best pop single of 2014, and rightfully so. "Chandelier" has the rare duality of functioning both as a fantastic ode to wild nights out and a thoughtful piece of writing about the human mind - a trait seen previously in Lady Gaga’s 2010 hit Telephone - that can appeal to anyone from the broodiest critic to the most intoxicated club-goer.
Unfortunately, the rest of Sia’s release, 1000 Forms of Fear, fails to match up to standards set by its lead single and opening track. That’s not saying that every other song on the release is terrible – "Fire Meets Gasoline" is a solid track, as is "Cellophane", but they appear too late in a track listing that quickly collapses into forgettable, underwhelming songs. Perhaps part of the reason those tracks appear to shine is purely because those that precede them are so dull. By the time "Free the Animal" begins to play, the album appears to have hit yet another sluggish low. 1000 Forms of Fear’s problem is not bad songwriting, or even bad production, but by being so unremarkable that nothing sticks - making the effort of listening to it in full seem almost like a chore.
While Sia’s efforts to stay away from celebrity are understandable, her animosity transfers over onto her music. 1000 Forms of Fear sounds like a random compilation of songs written by Sia rather than a cohesive, thoughtful record that provides any insight into the artist presenting it. The lack of personality on the record suggests that Sia should perhaps consider relying less on her blonde bob as her trademark and instead focus on creating music identifiable to who she is, both as a person and an artist. When the most interesting thing to do while listening to an album is listing which other singers could and should cover the tracks on it, it something needs to be said about the presence of the artist who released it. And for all her talent, Sia has none.
I would say that the actual words in the review matter more than the score the reviewer gives it.
The majority of these reviews do mention the faults (in the eyes of the reviewer) of the album fairly. I especially like this sentence:
Quote:
That being said, however, in quite a few tracks on this album (ie. "Fire Meet Gasoline" & "Burn the Pages"), she gets stuck sounding like the predecessor of a greater version: the "man, if only _______ sang this!" effect. One struggle Sia has as a result it sounding familiar without a unique aspect.
I feel as if it's a fair critique and that nobody is being too harsh.
Also, this was my favorite part of any review.
Quote:
While this isn't the perky breasts chanteuse's first venture into Pop, cue We Are Born (2010)
I'm having the same issue. As far as I have gathered from my two listens so far, Chandelier is easily the worst thing on the album but at least that elicits some sort of emotion from me. Angry, resentful emotions, but emotions nonetheless. The rest of the album just passes by me without leaving much of an impression beyond the occasional "wow, Sia really needs some more vocal training" and "is she saying words or just moaning?". It's impossible to even critique the lyrics when they're unintelligible 90% of the time.
Not really sure if it's even worth listening a couple more times just so I can post an adequately informed review.
Post a review! At the very least it's creative writing experience.
I'm having the same issue. As far as I have gathered from my two listens so far, Chandelier is easily the worst thing on the album but at least that elicits some sort of emotion from me. Angry, resentful emotions, but emotions nonetheless. The rest of the album just passes by me without leaving much of an impression beyond the occasional "wow, Sia really needs some more vocal training" and "is she saying words or just moaning?". It's impossible to even critique the lyrics when they're unintelligible 90% of the time.
Not really sure if it's even worth listening a couple more times just so I can post an adequately informed review.
You guys should try! I'm sure you can express this in ten sentences—you've already written 6. Someone needs to offset these 10s and 9s.
Sia - 1000 Forms of Fear
Sia's latest effort "1000 Forms of Fear" is her most versatile yet her most commercial, both vocally and production-wise. Vocally, it is as if there are three Sias on this album: the pop diva, the smoky nightclub singer, and the demo singer. Songs predominately by the "smoky nightclub singer" are the strongest (Chandelier, Fair Game) because she expresses emotion the most and is the easiest to understand and also the most fun. Songs by the pop diva are the most interesting (such as Elastic Heart and Free the Animal) with the powerhouse vocals and the hypnotic production that has a middle-ground between indie and pop. These songs are most likely to be the favorite by listeners. However, Sia the demo singer is apparent also, and she causes the album to be a bit of a bore because of a lack of identity and direction (Burn the Pages). The most powerful track is probably the closer "Dressed in Black". It seems as for minutes at a time she is belting almost hypnotically and it causes the album to close wonderfully. "1000 Forms of Fear" is far from a slump and her fans are sure to love it. 6.5/10
EDIT BECAUSE I FORGOT THIS AND I DON'T KNOW WHERE TO PUT IT IN MY REVIEW: Sia needs to focus on her diction more. Some songs have poor diction causing the listener to have trouble (Big Girls Cry).
After hearing about Sia around the time of the release of Some People Have Real Problems, I have been a lukewarm fan of hers. She has a fun accent, and I loved the snaggletooth, but she lacked the number of lasting songs. She had two or three songs on her albums that were great, but the majority I could not get into, although they seemed well-written and well-sung. 1000 Forms of Fear seems like the most listenable album Sia has ever done, and I think the songwriting is quality, although not her most inspired. Her singing is soulful and bluesy, but I don't understand why she is so mumbly and unintelligible this time around. Standout tracks are the bubbly and soulful "Hostage", the exhilarating "Burn the Pages", and the unique yet slightly overworked "Elastic Heart". Sia seems to tend to veer more towards sad songwriting, but the lightest moments are this albums strongpoint. Sometimes songs like "Chandelier" are a bit overdramatic, but they grow on me because Sia seems to exude a realness and a soulful artistry with her voice and lyrics. I was pleasantly surprised by this album, and I think she has the ability to do even better.