Cute & Awesome – Regina Spektor

Regina Spektor may be the cutest person ever.

I guess that’s not really relevant to her musical prowess, but I thought it was a fact to be touched on.

As many of you know, Regina Spektor released a new album, Far, not so long ago. I, of course, bought it. I even went crazy and bought the version with a DVD of music videos and two bonus songs.

That’s how excited I was.

I guess I should preface this with my opinion on Regina Spektor’s younger days of music makery, as everyone else feels the need to compare new Regina to old Regina.

11:11 is too crazy for me. I know, I’m a heretic. “Buildings” is pretty fabulous, but outside of that song i find the whole album to be so quirky as to almost be abrasive. It’s intrusive.

With that confession out of the way, I feel free as a bird and can forge ahead.

“Soviet Kitsch” saw, for me, a proper ratio of goofiness to amazing musical ability. “Begin to Hope” saw less goofiness, but there was just so much brilliant pop undertoneage. Once again label me a sinner and a heretic, but I think “Begin to Hope” may be the best alt-pop album. I don’t know if alt-pop exists properly, and I don’t want to google it lest it made me change my mind.

But, onto “Far”.

It’s…interesting. I feel as if both “Soviet Kitsch” and “Begin to Hope” had an overall feel to the album. Not so with “Far”. It switches around a tidge.

This album features many classical piano-heavy songs with a slow(ish) tempo. “Après Moi” comes to mind, though I feel as if that song did it way way better. For my taste, too many songs sound classically composed in some manner. They’re certainly not bad, they are perhaps just not my cup of tea. For example, I rated 7 songs from my 16 song CD as 3.5 stars. Just below something i would want to listen to often.

While an amount of the album doesn’t stand out to me personally, the songs she does do well (in my opinion) she does extremely well.

[Editor's note: None of the songs from "Far" are listed on last.fm so we have no links available for preview purposes.]

“Folding Chair” is just fantastic. When she mimics “the dolphins’ song” I giggle. It’s too lovely. I can personally attest that this song is perfect to dance to while making dinner on vacation at the beach.

“Dance Anthem of the 80’s” first struck me as a little hokey. I couldn’t have been more wrong. It’s cute. It’s goofy. It’s not, at all, hokey. It contains the most perfect bridge music has ever tasted, as well. As I generally think bridges detract from music and ought to just be left behind for the wolves, this is a feat. I love that bridge so much.

“The Calculation” sounds to me like it belongs on “Begin to Hope”. It’s clean, not that goofy, and super cute. It made me think this whole album would be like “Begin to Hope” part two.

There are some other keepers on the album. There are 6 other tracks on the album that i rated somewhere between a 4 star and a 5 star – the album is more than worth a peak, especially from a seasoned Regina-appreciator.

What to Expect?

Regina. She’s cute. She’s awesome. and she’s wicked talented.

What to take Away?

With this album, there’s no denying she’s good. It’s more a matter of your tastebuds how you’ll feel when the album stops spinning.

What Drink to Pair it With?

A glass of 2007 Helfrich Gewürztraminer. A lovely, spicey, vibrant red wine.

Favorite Song?

I think it comes down to “Folding Chair”. It’s just too good, though it only beats out “Dance Anthem of the 80’s” by a hair.