Audible Brightness

LIGHTS! More commonly followed by camera! action!, but not however in this case. No, instead I'm speaking of the talented musician better known as Lights. With a debut album still fresh in the market, this electro-pop artist (or so the font of knowledge describes her) was brought to my attention earlier this year. Curiously enough it was not her usual styling that grabbed me but instead an acoustic version of her own song The Listening, a recording she had done purely for fans and posted on youtube for anyone what wanted to hear it. While not vastly different from the original, the song managed have its own grip on the ears it flowed to that wasn't quite the same as its electronic cousin.
Those willing to explore further into Lights' own youtube channel can find a wealth of videos each with with an acoustic version of tracks from her album. Her soft voice a fine compliment to her acoustic playing and invoking an altogether more relaxed mood when compared to the bass and synthesizer filled album variations. This came as a mighty find for someone like me, who finds acoustic playing so intriguing (I've strummed a few chords now and then) and acoustic variations of songs all the more so. Throw them together and you've got some audio catnip for yours truly. The other shoe had to drop though and in this case it was that the acoustic versions are only available in the videos. Now I'm sure that with some technological wizardry the sound could be lifted and thrown onto an mp3 player but that's not a nerd field I'm familiar with. As such I resigned my fate to getting my acoustic fix when near a computer.

Now! Several months down the line and through a simple twist of fate I have learnt that the little musical beauty is releasing a new EP. Not just any EP however. Titled quite simply as 'Lights Acoustic' this little delight contains 5 acoustic songs ready for personal use. Three of these are versions of album tracks; Saviour, February Air and River. With the final two tracks something of a treat. Fall Back Down, originally of punk band Rancid fame and Romance Is, a new track.
So now there is some acoustic joy to throw on my mp3 player to listen to on the go. The only faults I find with the EP are two fold:

• My personal favourite acoustic version of The Listening is absent.
• With this being a studio produced endeavour, the tracks I'm familiar with from her album seem different still from their youtube acoustic counterparts.

The natural live vibe you get from Lights sitting down and recording a video is gone and instead we're left with cleaned up vocals and guitar. This is more than likely just personal taste since I'm a fan of live music over studio recordings, but I couldn't help but feel the song February Air had lost the pull that the video version held over me. Nevertheless these songs will no doubt grow on me. Evident instantly upon a second listen.
As for the Rancid cover, the song has lost the high energy the original possesses but still remains fun. The tempo seems slightly dropped in order to allow the chords to ring through which is entirely welcome for such clean playing.
Romance Is comes across as a much more sombre affair than Lights fans may be used to, with lyrics suggesting emotional pain throughout. But it works. With a quick strumming pattern and a tune that tempts me to try to learn it, this new darker song is a welcome addition to the now growing back catalogue this budding artist has set in motion. What would be interesting to see (or hear) would be an entirely acoustic album of new tracks with an EP released later on converting these songs into the electronic style. The mirror of what has been done here. But with the EP and album both less than a year old and their creator still touring, only time will tell what surprises Lights has in store for us, with however little or much camera and action she can rustle up.