Joan as Police Woman

---

---

Customer reviews

review by: date: 2007-08-09 rating:
Universal sidekick gets out from under for solo EP
Perhaps it's contrary to hide your real name behind a reference to a forgotten 70s cop drama, especially when what you really need to do is escape the shadow of more famous collaborators. br / br /As sessioneer and sidewoman, Joan Wasser has played and sung with Rufus Wainwright and Antony the Johnsons, Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, Sheryl Crow and the Scissors Sisters. She's had three bands of her own, including the short-lived Black Beetle which she formed with her lover Jeff Buckley's backing band after his death in '97. br / br /Primarily a classically-trained violinist, she's adapted well to guitar - from the fuzzy discords which rough up the smooth jazz surfaces of "My Gurl" to the weird syncopation and bell-like chiming of "How Come You're So Solid Gold". br / br /She's working hard to escape the backing-vocalist label, and she emotes too hard in places, eager to show off what her voice can do. She moves from throaty contralto on "Prime Mover" to a more playful, intimate sound on "Stagger Into The Light" which is reminiscent of late-period Debbie Harry. Near the end of "Solid Gold", she multitracks the vocals in a glorious Martha-Wainwright layer cake. Here the effect is oddly choral, and very moving. br / br /Like many excellent musicians, though, Wasser is an oddly inhibited songwriter and her songs tend to meander with few melodic hooks or real harmonic coherence. The real exception is "Game Of Life" which is carried by the sinuous middle-eastern violin melody. The song ends with a series of little can-can dancer yelps like Nicole Kidman on heat in the comedy seduction scene from "Moulin Rouge" - an unexpected touch of humour to round off an interesting, if flawed debut. br / br /first published at www.subba-cultcha.com

---

review by: date: 2006-03-28 rating:
One to watch
Although JAPW has been involved with Anthony the Johnsons and Rufus Wainwright, don't expect facsimilies of their music here. It's not as camp and it is more guitary. That is not to say that this isn't good... In fact its one of those slow burning things that leaves you wanting more. One to watch...

---

review by: date: 2006-03-02 rating:
buy this
at first listen you will find this a really good ep. then for some reason you will be unable to remove it from your cd player. it becomes something truly great over repeated listens.

---

review by: date: 2006-02-10 rating:
6 exclsuive tracks not on her debut full length
now featuring re- recorded versions and a bonus unissued track brJoan As Policewomans first 6 tracker has already become a firm favourite with Rufus Wainwright and Antony and the johnsons fansbr( joan plays with both bands)who saw her solo on tour.Now via its official UK release JAPW are swiftly becoming a hot band and being tipped for greatness within the industry. Her full album REAL LIFE will take things to another level again.. go see joan ben and rainy on tour in march 2006 at london , derby, brighton, glasgow, edinburgh,birmingham, sheffield and hear them on BBC 6 music where marc riley and gideon coe were the first to get behind the first single my gurl. Her music is some of the best Ive heard in years and from the evidence of this ep and her forthcoming full length you will be seeing and hearing so much more in months to come..


review by: date: 2005-12-27 rating:
Bring back the mohawk Joan, please...
New York singer/songwriter Joan Wasser has probably seen it all; from performing and recording with Rufus Wainwright, Antony The Johnsons, Lou Reed, Scissor Sisters and Nick Cave, as well as once stepping out with a certain Jeff Buckley, she's been at the heart of original and inventive music making for quite some time. Now she has signed to independant label Reveal Records, this is her chance to show us all what she's capable of. br / br /As you would no doubt expect from a woman who once led her youth orchestra as lead violinist whilst sporting a platinum mohawk, she's capable of quite a lot. A talented multi-instrumentalist (violin, guitar, piano, wurlitzer) and gifted songwriter, she takes full advantage of the rich assortment of textures at her fingertips and her eclectic musical background. She makes music that I cannot begin to catagorise; all that I can say is that she writes intelligent, heartfelt and interesting music. And she's no acoustic weepy either, these are hard and powerful songs, the sort of songs that demand to be listened to. She grabs your ears with her dark, sultry voice and then squeezes them until they bleed as she woops and howls with the sort of fire and passion that you wish Nora bloody Jones would exhibit once in while. I would recommend this if you're a fan of Rufus or Antony, or a fan of strong female vocalists, or if you just like good quality music.

---

Similar products

Real Life
To Survive
Fleet Foxes
For Emma Forever Ago
I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too

---

Similar categories

Music . Styles . Indie . Bestsellers
Music . Substores . Regular Stores . Artist Pages Filter Nodes . Main Albums
Music . Refinements . Format (binding_browse-bin) . CD . CD Album

---