Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
The belief in the concept of the overnight success is one that does disservice to the hard work going on behind the scenes of every soul, every mind, in every corner of the world. It is the buy in to wish fulfilment, the stuff of dreams that are impossible to get on board with because it focuses on the aftermath and not the genuine passion that is the drive to life.
The State Of Mind is one overlooked, the one that understands that dedication to a personal cause can take as much time as it needs, whether it one month, one year, or a decade and longer, for even in the smallest amount of time that the audience sees the person become huge, it doesn’t mean that the person has not been working tirelessly, it’s just their moment and they have grabbed it, seized it and made it pay.
A State of Mind worth celebrating is one that is open, willing to acknowledge the times they live in, and one which understands completely that life is not all about the being positive, but being active, of letting the mind work furiously and with intent, and one to which the unfolding brilliance of Laura Evans has manifested and produced an album of searing groove and introspection, and one that is presented as burning indictment against the term overnight success.
To fight fire with fire might seem a complex idiom in which to grasp but it is one that we should be prepared to do more often, for everyone is battling their own demons and observations, and it can produce magic if we take it down the logical route; and that is Laura Evans gift to the listening public, an album, State Of Mind, which is gloriously stimulating and attention grabbing, but which has the absolute charm of curious wonder sewed throughout its presentation.
The vocals of the South Wales valley song writer are a fascinating mix of Americana and Blues, straddled with pop overtures and the heavy mass of the Rock sound, and as tracks such as Solo, Fire With Fire, Fool, Let You Down Easy, Good At Getting Over You, Mess Of Me, and the album’s title track, State Of Mind, that sum of all its parts only tells a fraction of the story, for what lays underneath is a subtle burning passion, an aural drawing of attention that her dedication to the craft has seen her succeed beyond the initial introduction, and become a statement of fact, of seismic belief.
An artist that appears out of nowhere does not just materialise from thin air, the work may be unseen by the world, but the graft is immense, and for Laura Evans it is paying off with virtue unbowed.
Laura Evans’ debut album State Of Mind is out now and available from Rosie Music.
Laura Evans will be special guest on Matt Andersen’s U.K. tour from 11th -18th October. Tickets are on sale now.
Ian D. Hall