Now based out of the Los Angeles area, Amilia K. Spicer’s career trajectory and path through life inform each other in ever important ways. Her voyage began in the pastoral surroundings of rural Pennsylvania before carrying her to the hill country of eastern Texas and even excursions to the Far East. The experiences she’s picked up along the way have been thoroughly integrated into her art and you hear it vividly reflected in her growing body of work. The latest album from Spicer, Wow and Flutter, has catapulted her into a whole new realm of critical renown and has set a memorable stage for the new single “Love’s For Living”. She has entered into a brave new world, a crucial phase of her ascending career, and this is just the sort of song capable of turning a blazing fire into a full on inferno. The same artistry defining her Wow and Flutter collection is very much in evidence on this new release.
URL: http://www.amiliakspicer.com/
The uncluttered mid-tempo jangle of the arrangement gets under listener’s skin from the first and has a warm, inviting ambiance. It’s primarily acoustic in nature and the slightly playful backing vocals strike a tone perfectly in keeping with the arrangement’s sound. Spicer’s arrangement has a decidedly light, melodic touch and most of the song’s signature feel comes from the coupling of her vocal melody with the backing track. They are in total accord with one another. There’s a slowly swaying quality to her vocal melody that enhances the suggestiveness of the lyrics. It’s another area among many where Spicer stands apart from her contemporaries and peers, but writing and releasing a holiday songs doesn’t prompt her to dumb down her approach in any way. The evocative quality of these lyrics is quite real.
Spicer’s voice is a marvel of its own. Wow and Flutter, her latest full length album release, established her as a vocalist with effective range and this performance emphasizes that point. She has an innate confidence that carries her through the lines and chorus with a focus reaching far beyond the sort of intent most performers bring to this type of material. It’s an affection love song, but not in a formulaic way and the idiosyncratic character that Spicer brings to her performance is the central thing distinguishing and lifting it above so much else released today. There’s a good reason why Spicer has attracted the talents of some of the music world’s best and brightest. The same sense of destiny, like she is born to do this, pervading her earlier recordings is just as present on her latest single “Love’s for Living”. This isn’t some trifle released to cash in on the season. Instead, Amilia Spicer demonstrates once again why she’s one of the most impressive talents working on the scene today and clearly shows her hot streak of creativity will continue unabated for some time to come.
Jason Hillenburg
