MARY KARLZEN: The Wanderlust Diaries

Mary Karlzen

The Wanderlust Diaries

© 2007 Dualtone Records

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A unique blend of folk, rock and country with a signature vocal style.

tracks

1 For One Moment
2 Straws
3 Skyway
4 Oh My
5 Show Me
6 Jump
7 Find Yourself
8 Looking For The Heart Of Saturday Night
9 Friends Along The Way
10 Stupid Or Something
11 Sixteen
12 Stay Forever

notes

Eclectic enough to cover both Tom Waits ("Heart of a Saturday Night") and Paul Westerberg (the touching "Skyway" has never sounded more lovely) without feeling forced, Mary Karlzen keeps both feet firmly in the folk-rock Americana that has always defined her work. Her girlish voice shifts between Juliana Hatfield, Beth Orton and Jewel, finding the innocence and longing in personal songs that are almost always sung in the first person. She's a singer/songwriter in the tradition of John Hiatt and early Joni Mitchell, serious and smart with an unerring eye for detail in her lyrics. Wanderlust Diaries is bookended by stripped-down tunes where Karlzen is joined only by John Deaderick's spartan piano. But the disc is dominated by strummy band tracks played with finesse by, among others, E Street Band bassist Garry Talent and ex-Wilco drummer Ken Coomer. Karlzen's acoustic guitar focuses the sound, and producer/multi-instrumentalist Jansen Press adds just enough instruments and frills to underscore the singer's lyrics without ever overwhelming them. "Stupid or Something" is a terrific example of a song that takes flight with a folk-rock arrangement that leaps out of the speakers. Percussion and theatrical strings are added for drama on "Sixteen," a story-song that starts as a fond reminiscence of a summer but turns terribly dark in its final verse. It's a textbook example of what Karlzen does best as this album shifts from one highlight to the next on a journey through a scrapbook life, some of which might be based on personal experience. On her fourth release, all for different labels, Karlzen has delivered a gem that, in a perfect world, would generate a major Americana buzz.

Hall Howrowitz - ALL MUSIC

reviews

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  • Karlzen does it again
    author: Jeff Corpening

    Though all her music is personal, this new CD seems more intimate than anything she's offered since her first independent release. Perhaps it's that Mary Karlzen has been through so much more in her life. Perhaps it's because she lets the listener in just a bit more as she grows artistically. Either way, her music has reached a point where each track fills your heart and touches you in a way that makes you glad to have taken the journey with her. "Diaries" offers a unique blend of a newcomer’s accessibility with the polished quality of a seasoned professional. This latest CD release reminds me why I became a Mary Karlzen fan in the first place, and why I’m proud to still be one.

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