Rating: NNN
High-spirited Selina Martin isn’t afraid to take chances. The Toronto singer/songwriter’s third album kicks off with several jolts of catchy, high-powered rock, gives way to a bare-bones jazz-ballad-inflected cover of Rush’s The Spirit Of Radio (gutsy!) and then bounces between loud and soft till the end.
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With vocal stylings like a precocious Sheryl Crow, especially on No Form, Martin proves she’s a capable pop-rocker with a playful approach to songwriting, while her interspersed ballads add gravity and welcome breathing space. The standout Rape During Wartime is smartly arranged and lyrically vivid, while the closer, Watershed, gets surprisingly psychedelic.
Disaster Fantasies isn’t exactly a cohesive listen, but it’s definitely interesting.
Top track: Rape During Wartime
Selina Martin plays the Garrison tonight (Thursday, July 8).
