Lisa Marie Presley: Storm and Grace
Storm and Grace is Lisa Marie Presley’s third album. Although the daughter of Elvis and ex-wife of the late Michael Jackson never quite made it as a pop-rock diva, she does have her own unique style.
The fifteen original songs that Lisa wrote for this album are very upfront and real. They reflect her unpretentiously strong but bleak feelings about love and life. And I must say they’re well-suited to the melancholic timbre of her voice.
Technically speaking, she doesn’t have a great singing voice and she has a tendency to drawl through vowels, making her unintelligible at times.
But she does have a sense of presence when she sings and she can sell songs that are moody and sullen so in that sense, Storm and Grace plays to her strengths.
Producer T Bone Burnette also does a good job of emphasizing Lisa’s strengths and producing a consistent tone.
He builds momentum on “So Long” with a gradual crescendo in the bassline, while the subtle mixing of a crying steel-guitar line on “Close to the Edge” reflects the song’s underlying sadness.
The upright bass and two-step rhythm give the arrangement of “Over Me” a real swagger to match Lisa’s attitude.
On the whole, the album generates few sparks and could have benefited with a couple more upbeat tracks so I’m giving Storm and Grace 2 outta 5.
Watch my review of Lisa Marie Presley’s Storm and Grace on AM Live! Channel NewsAsia
