Sophie B. Hawkins
Wilderness

(Trumpet Swan)

First Appeared in The Music Box, July 2004, Volume 11, #7

Written by T.J. Simon

In 1992, Sophie B. Hawkins released the gloriously infectious single Damn, I Wish I Were Your Lover, but her career quickly went astray, meaning what followed was a dozen years of hitless silence. Well, it turns out that she was, in fact, releasing albums the entire time; the difference was that she was doing so without making much of a splash. Hawkins’ latest kick at the can is Wilderness, an embarrassing display of poor songwriting combined with lackluster instrumentation that isn’t even saved by her naked-among-the-wheat-fields cover photo. The biggest problem with the album is that she doesn’t appear to know whether she wants to be Britney Spears or Sheryl Crow. In essence, Wilderness is disco music from the world’s lamest nightclub combined with party-girl songs performed long after the celebration has ended. The lead-off track Beautiful Girl is the only palatable cut worthy of a second listen while the remainder of the record sounds as if Hawkins is singing — albeit in good voice — over the pre-programmed musical beds that come with the purchase of a $500 Casio keyboard. In other words, avoid this CD like a mad cow burger. ½

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Ratings

1 Star:   Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!

Copyright © 2004 The Music Box