Album Review: Ever Since the World Ended from Lauren White

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Album:  Ever Since the World Ended
Artist:  Lauren White
Label:  Café Pacific Records
Website:  www.laurenwhitejazz.com

A torchbearer of cabaret jazz, vocalist Lauren White's contribution to the genre is embraceable.  Her fifth CD, Ever Since the World Ended features a collection of cover tunes and originals, finely groomed to a melodic sheen.  From the smooth jazz cruising of the title track to the swing jazz-influenced shimmies of "Take Love Easy," White moves through a series of vignettes, each presenting listeners with a sonically picturesque setting.

 
Like a favorite pillow, White's performance is comforting, offering solace and warmth.  The lingering tone in her voicing through "Alone Together" is supported by the bubbling doodles of Quinn Johnson's keys.  Switching to a light-hearted scamper along "Just the Two of Us," White's optimism is infectious, wrapping the listener in her perky timbres.  The soft flutter of Grant Geissman's guitar is strewn across 'Remembering the Rain," studded by the gentle putter of Alex Budman's flute, making for a sonically picturesque vignette, imagining a walk through a lush meadow.  

The swing jazz rhythm trotting across "Some of that Sunshine" has a traditional jazz flare, augmented by Trey Henry's pumping bass pulls and the mint julep-tinged vamp of Johnson's keys.  Keeping the energy up, White dives into the sunny mood of "Take Love Easy" then segues into the reflective soundscape of "Shattered."  Moving between lounging tempos and jumping rhythms, White varies her strides, catering them to the tone of the melody and the image she wishes to project in the vignette.

Showing a penchant for telling stories, Lauren White leaves a distinct impression on listener's mind through her voice.  Her latest release holds true to the principles of cabaret jazz, desiring to impact audiences at the basic level of touching human emotions.

Musicians:
Lauren White - vocals
Quinn Johnson - piano
Trey Henry - bass
Ray Brinker - drums
Kevin Winward - percussion
Dolores Scozzesi - vocals

On the track "Remembering the Rain"
Kevin Axt - bass
Alex Budman - flute
Grant Geissman - guitar
Chris Wabich - drums
Kevin Winard - percussion  

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