Finally Woken

From Amazon.co.uk
Though the downbeat electronica and laconic vocals of Cardiff-born Jem Griffiths find her lumbered with a "Dido-wannabe" tag, she's actually much more adventurous than that. On the whole, Finally Woken sounds like someone finally told Beth Orton to cheer up, and at its best the album finds Jem reveling in all the studio tricks available to her. The opener, "They," loops a nonsensical children's chorus to create a mood of Danny Elfmanesque creepiness, while "Come On Closer" and "24" manage to use crunching electric guitars and strings while avoiding any comparison to Evanescence. The title track combines a loping beat with a jazzy vocal delivery that's reminiscent of Portishead, and "Save Me" is a better-than-average R&B track that's sure to be covered for years to come. Unfortunately, too much of the album's latter half sinks into a slow-paced Didoesque electronic slurry, though Jem's to be applauded for at least trying to liven things up with the cod-reggae of "Wish I." --Robert Burrow

Finally Woken,Jem,Ato Records,Adult Alternative Pop/Rock,Electronica,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop

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Finally Woken

Average customer rating: Used to be a four but then I played it out Wish we could hear more from Jem! very happy with my purchase! She leaves me wanting more..... NOT BAD

Finally Woken Jem Manufacturer: Ato Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: Happenstance Details Speak for Yourself Love in the Time of Science Wreck of the Day ASIN: B0001FFIY2 Release Date: 2004-03-23

Tracks:

1. They
2. Come On Closer
3. Finally Woken
4. Save Me
5. 24
6. Missing You
7. Wish I
8. Just A Ride
9. Falling For You
10. Stay Now
11. Flying High

From Amazon.co.uk

Though the downbeat electronica and laconic vocals of Cardiff-born Jem Griffiths find her lumbered with a "Dido-wannabe" tag, she's actually much more adventurous than that. On the whole, Finally Woken sounds like someone finally told Beth Orton to cheer up, and at its best the album finds Jem reveling in all the studio tricks available to her. The opener, "They," loops a nonsensical children's chorus to create a mood of Danny Elfmanesque creepiness, while "Come On Closer" and "24" manage to use crunching electric guitars and strings while avoiding any comparison to Evanescence. The title track combines a loping beat with a jazzy vocal delivery that's reminiscent of Portishead, and "Save Me" is a better-than-average R&B track that's sure to be covered for years to come. Unfortunately, too much of the album's latter half sinks into a slow-paced Didoesque electronic slurry, though Jem's to be applauded for at least trying to liven things up with the cod-reggae of "Wish I." --Robert Burrow

Customer Reviews:

Used to be a four but then I played it out.......2007-06-18

It happens. I think it's because there wasn't a lot of depth behind her music. I can be a sucker for the beat so that's what drew me in but after a while I got bored.

Wish we could hear more from Jem!.......2007-05-23

I've listened to Jem off and on for a long time and I think she is totally underrated! I love her soultry sounds and her beautiful voice. The only part I didn't like is the second half of the CD slows down and gets kind of boring. But the first half is great.

very happy with my purchase!.......2007-04-11

Love, love, love this cd!! Thank you so much!! Perfect shape and fast delivery!!

She leaves me wanting more............2007-03-14

Jem's velvet vocals drift sweetly through instrumentals funky, fresh, and grooving. SHe is an upbeat Enya, but more "modern" than New Age...Dido sans bubblegum. Where 80s bopchics splattered punk with hot pink, Jem paints it up pretty in pastel. THis album is versatile--the first half gets me energized during a workout, the last half sends me smiling to sleep at night.

WHERE'S THE NEW ALBUM???

NOT BAD.......2007-02-19

Some of it's upbeat, some of it's downbeat. Jem looks like a little kid, but she's got the smokey voice of a chanteuse. You'll probably like some of the cuts and others not so much like. It's a mixed bag but, overall, I'm glad I ran into this CD while searching for something else. This could be a refreshing change of pace from the usual stuff you've been listening to.

Average customer rating: Perhaps the single 'They' is a better choice What a Jem

Finally Woken Jem ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Rock | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Rock | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B0009YVC1I Release Date: 2005-06-07

Tracks:

1. They
2. Come on Closer
3. Finally Woken
4. Save Me
5. 24
6. Missing You
7. Wish I
8. Just a Ride
9. Falling for You
10. Stay Now
11. Flying High

Album Description

Though the downbeat electronica and laconic vocals of Cardiff-born Jem Griffiths find her lumbered with a "Dido-wannabe" tag, she's actually much more adventurous than that. On the whole, Finally Woken sounds like someone finally told Beth Orton to cheer up, and at its best the album finds Jem reveling in all the studio tricks available to her. The opener, "They," loops a nonsensical children's chorus to create a mood of Danny Elfmanesque creepiness, while "Come On Closer" and "24" manage to use crunching electric guitars and strings while avoiding any comparison to Evanescence. The title track combines a loping beat with a jazzy vocal delivery that's reminiscent of Portishead, and "Save Me" is a better-than-average R&B track that's sure to be covered for years to come. Unfortunately, too much of the album's latter half sinks into a slow-paced Didoesque electronic slurry, though Jem's to be applauded for at least trying to liven things up with the cod-reggae of "Wish I." Sony. 2005.

Customer Reviews:

Perhaps the single 'They' is a better choice.......2005-08-27

I listened to the song 'They' many times on the radio and I liked it so much, that I bought the entire CD without checking out the rest of the songs first. I'ld better have done that, though, because it's quite disappointing. None of the songs is particularly bad, but they resemble each other too much. The first 2 or 3 songs kept my attention, but after that I didn't really listen anymore. And then I would realise that, suddenly, the CD had finished and I couldn't really remember what I had heard for the latest half an hour or so. This happened not only the first time that I played it, but also the 3 or 4 times afterwards. I'm afraid that this CD will end up catching dust.

What a Jem.......2005-07-24

Welsh singer Jem meshes together a half dozen musical genres in her debut "Finally Woken." Expect pop, electro, maybe a dash of hip-hop here'n'there. The unclassifiable collection sounds messier than it is -- it ends up being sweet and sensuous with Jem's quietly throaty voice, even though it seems to fall through in the middle.

The album starts off strong with the tinkly, hip-hop-flavored "They," the ethereal "Come On Closer," and the sunny title track. But after the hard-edged "24," things start to slip down a bit with the forgettable pop "Missing You," childish "Ride," and pretty but unexciting "Falling For You."

It would be easy to dismiss the album there and then, as "Finally Woke" slips into the area of "instapop" that barely registers as the early songs do. Then Jem takes a steep turn back up with the gentle "Stay Now," and the soaring, sweet acoustic pop "Flying High."

"Finally Woken" has the distinction of being really hard to classify. There's some pop, trip-hop, hip-hop, folk and some little tinges of rock here and there. Its biggest problem is that the middle sags, as if Jem loses her enthusiasm after the first five songs or so, only to rediscover it at the end.

Jem's voice is what makes this album -- her voice is throaty, soft and gentle, and it serves as the centerpiece of the music. She doesn't strike a discordant note or lose her vocal confidence. What is more, her voice is capable of covering up the lyrical deficiencies of some of her songs, like the poppy "Wish I" ("Baby, you're sailing away/Sugar, wish I could go too/But honey you know/I'm happy for you").

The writing itself is fairly standard pop fare, with plenty of love songs that don't have particularly good writing. They're not bad, but most of them aren't that great either. The exception is "24," with its plaintively morbid: "In 24 hours they'll be/laying flowers/on my life, it's over tonight!" And backing it up is a mishmash of electronic beats, acoustic guitar, strings, percussion and perky chimes, that are somehow turned into a pretty, fresh pop sound.

The writing and middle songs are not up to par, but Jem's beautiful voice and crazy-quilt music make this "Just Woken" thoroughly enjoyable debut, in spite of its major flaws. Pretty and fun, this is worth checking out.

Average customer rating: half excellent, half not so Finally waking

Finally Woken ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Rock | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Rock | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B0007WAEAC Release Date: 2005-05-10

From Amazon.co.uk

Though the downbeat electronica and laconic vocals of Cardiff-born Jem Griffiths find her lumbered with a "Dido-wannabe" tag, she's actually much more adventurous than that. On the whole, Finally Woken sounds like someone finally told Beth Orton to cheer up, and at its best the album finds Jem reveling in all the studio tricks available to her. The opener, "They," loops a nonsensical children's chorus to create a mood of Danny Elfmanesque creepiness, while "Come On Closer" and "24" manage to use crunching electric guitars and strings while avoiding any comparison to Evanescence. The title track combines a loping beat with a jazzy vocal delivery that's reminiscent of Portishead, and "Save Me" is a better-than-average R&B track that's sure to be covered for years to come. Unfortunately, too much of the album's latter half sinks into a slow-paced Didoesque electronic slurry, though Jem's to be applauded for at least trying to liven things up with the cod-reggae of "Wish I." --Robert Burrow

Customer Reviews:

half excellent, half not so.......2006-04-25

I am not very knowledgeable about music genres or producers or classification of human voices. But I listen to most new music that doesn't come under anything hardcore (hard rock, rap, hip/hop etc). Music blending different styles, good production, nice voice.. yeah, I can live with that. Track 1,3,4,7,8 - really enjoy those. The rest not so. Ovarall good driving music. No matter how loud you play it, it doesn't hurt your ear.

Finally waking.......2005-04-27

Welsh singer Jem meshes together a half dozen musical genres in her debut "Finally Woken." Expect pop, electro, maybe a dash of hip-hop here'n'there. The unclassifiable collection sounds messier than it is -- it ends up being sweet and sensuous with Jem's quietly throaty voice, even though it seems to fall through in the middle.

The album starts off strong with the tinkly, hip-hop-flavored "They," the ethereal "Come On Closer," and the sunny title track. But after the hard-edged "24," things start to slip down a bit with the forgettable pop "Missing You," childish "Ride," and pretty but unexciting "Falling For You."

It would be easy to dismiss the album there and then, as "Finally Woke" slips into the area of "instapop" that barely registers as the early songs do. Then Jem takes a steep turn back up with the gentle "Stay Now," and the soaring, sweet acoustic pop "Flying High."

"Finally Woken" has the distinction of being really hard to classify. There's some pop, trip-hop, hip-hop, folk and some little tinges of rock here and there. Its biggest problem is that the middle sags, as if Jem loses her enthusiasm after the first five songs or so, only to rediscover it at the end.

Jem's voice is what makes this album -- her voice is throaty, soft and gentle, and it serves as the centerpiece of the music. She doesn't strike a discordant note or lose her vocal confidence. What is more, her voice is capable of covering up the lyrical deficiencies of some of her songs, like the poppy "Wish I" ("Baby, you're sailing away/Sugar, wish I could go too/But honey you know/I'm happy for you").

The writing itself is fairly standard pop fare, with plenty of love songs that don't have particularly good writing. They're not bad, but most of them aren't that great either. The exception is "24," with its plaintively morbid: "In 24 hours they'll be/laying flowers/on my life, it's over tonight!" And backing it up is a mishmash of electronic beats, acoustic guitar, strings, percussion and perky chimes, that are somehow turned into a pretty, fresh pop sound.

The writing and middle songs are not up to par, but Jem's beautiful voice and crazy-quilt music make this "Just Woken" thoroughly enjoyable debut, in spite of its major flaws. Pretty and fun, this is worth checking out.

Average customer rating:

Finally Woken Jem Manufacturer: Bmg ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Rock | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Rock | Imports | Stores | Music ASIN: B0007U8XLQ Release Date: 2005-03-28

From Amazon.co.uk

Though the downbeat electronica and laconic vocals of Cardiff-born Jem Griffiths find her lumbered with a "Dido-wannabe" tag, she's actually much more adventurous than that. On the whole, Finally Woken sounds like someone finally told Beth Orton to cheer up, and at its best the album finds Jem reveling in all the studio tricks available to her. The opener, "They," loops a nonsensical children's chorus to create a mood of Danny Elfmanesque creepiness, while "Come On Closer" and "24" manage to use crunching electric guitars and strings while avoiding any comparison to Evanescence. The title track combines a loping beat with a jazzy vocal delivery that's reminiscent of Portishead, and "Save Me" is a better-than-average R&B track that's sure to be covered for years to come. Unfortunately, too much of the album's latter half sinks into a slow-paced Didoesque electronic slurry, though Jem's to be applauded for at least trying to liven things up with the cod-reggae of "Wish I." --Robert Burrow

Album Description

Includes bonus track. ATO. 2005.

Album Details

Japanese Release featuring a Bonus Track

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Rap Music

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