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Review: 'We Fall' by Emile Haynie

 
Tampa Bay Times
Published March 18, 2015

At first glance of the track listing for Emile Haynie's debut album, We Fall, it's easy to assume the album will be defined by the number of guest appearances on it. Haynie gathers some of the best (but not necessarily big-time names), such as Lana Del Rey, Dev Hynes and Rufus Wainwright.

However, We Fall is not a singles-based album, similar to Calvin Harris or David Guetta efforts. Instead, it's more of a well-put-together collection of interesting, slightly mainstream and contemporary pop music.

Songs such as A Kiss Goodbye, Fool Me Too and Little Ballerina embody those different genres of the album. A Kiss Goodbye is simplistic but requires delving beyond its repetitive lyrics to enjoy the beauty of it. The prominent, exotic sound of some sort of kalimba, an African percussion instrument, weaves into the steady melody with the piano.

Look no further than Fool Me Too for the most current pop fix available. Nate Ruess being featured on it easily gives away what the song will sound like.

Little Ballerina is rather straightforward in terms of genre but at the same time is the perfect capsule of it. Also, Wainwright's mellow vocals pair well with the carefree feel of the song.

The idea of featuring a mash-up of artists he's previously worked with was kind of genius on Haynie's part. Picking familiar collaborators, not just the biggest names out there, makes We Fall seem more cohesive, not disjointed like many similarly formatted albums.

BY DINORAH PREVOST Seminole High