Sarah Harmer Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Canadian singer/songwriter Sarah Harmer approaches the music on her third solo release, I'm a Mountain, from a more traditional standpoint, bringing in elements of bluegrass, country, and boogie-woogie to her already-established modern folk sound. The album was recorded in July 2005 in Toronto after a hiking trip on the Niagara Escarpment in southern Ontario. Harmer grew up near the Escarpment, and when she heard about the threat of development there, she and her band decided to hike it to raise awareness over its plight. The song "Escarpment Blues" details this problem effectively, presenting the obvious attachment and love Harmer has for this region and her concern over its future (and using great internal rhymes like "we might get a load of stone for the road"), while staying away from eco-friendly clichés. The musicianship on the entire album is fantastic, especially the guitar, which ranges in style from Lynyrd Skynyrd-type riffs to bluegrass fingerpicking with a classical bent. Harmer's lyrics also show this versatility. Topically they deal with many of the same issues folksingers have always sung about, although of course Harmer adds a modern twist, wondering why the woman advertising for Wal-Mart is "laughing so unnaturally," in the title track, and addressing a victim of AIDS in the lovely "Goin' Out," on which her father adds backing vocals. Harmer occasionally falls victim to the folksinger's greatest vice, the overextended metaphor, but for the most part her lyrics are direct and personal without being too sentimental, and her melodies are tuneful and catchy but not too predictable. Her cover of Dolly Parton's "Will He Be Waiting for Me" retains the hopeful regret that the original has, and the children's "Salamandre," written by her friends Kate Fenner and Chris Brown, is stunning, highlighting Harmer's clear alto in a way not heard in her folkier songs. Because it is Harmer's voice that her fans want to listen to, and I'm a Mountain delivers that perfectly. ~ Marisa Brown, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Sarah Harmer's house sounds like a cool place to visit. With instruments and recording equipment in every room and traveling bands sleeping over, the place is filled as much with music as it is with warm sunlight. Harmer embraces this. "Engineered, mixed and produced by Sarah Harmer and Martin Davis Kinack at her house," the liners for All of Our Names state simply. And with just a few mixing and mastering tweaks, the album walked out the front door. There's fully formed adult alternative stuff here, from the robust head-nod lilt of "Almost," to "New Enemy"'s more stately melody. But listen to those drums on the latter, and the offhand chimes of the acoustic guitar -- close your eyes and you're in the Harmer house, foot on the front of the kick drum so it doesn't slide across the floor. This immediacy helps sell All of Our Names, since music like this can be smothered by over-production. It supports Harmer's smoky, vaguely Joni Mitchell-ish vocals, and the offhandedly prescient characterizations and observations in her lyrics, and makes the jumble of guitars, Wurlitzer, bass, percussion, and occasional horns that much more comfy. Remember Songs for Clem? Yeah, it's a little like that, only with a few more mics and a mixing board in the closet. Is that falling rain in the background of "Greeting Card Aisle"? The song's resignation is palpable and strong over the urgent acoustic guitar line, the one that accelerates and slows like an old car in winter. "Have you got me in your bleeding heart file/Next to Lady Luck?" Harmer asks. "Well this Light of your Life has drawn the blind," and you can just hear her bitter exhale of air. "Silver Road" is much happier, a bit reminiscent of Lucinda Williams, while "Things to Forget" adds some electro-organic synth work into the mix, setting up the sparer final section of Names. The sun, the weather, cars and roads -- they appear again thematically for "Things." "Can we pull over to the shoulder so I can write this song?" she asks, as autumn fades into the winter holidays. "Took It All" is spare, the sonic separation between its drums, organ, and guitar perfect under Harmer's starkly beautiful vocal. There's a chance this one was recorded in the wee hours, as the living room's lights spilled into the shadowy night. "Tether" might be the most personal thing here, its lyrics in the first person, angry and downcast all at once. She misses someone, but she has the house and its warmth as comfort, and that's something. Listening to the homey, gorgeous All of Our Names, we can vouch for that. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Sarah Harmer's first solo effort, You Were Here, doesn't allow a simple categorization of style or reveal a sweeping trend in progress. But it is certain that she is an artist choosing wisely from a great scope of colors. With a pleasing and misleading start, the rollicking opening track asserts its individuality with a Vaudevillian clarinet, keeping one foot in Kinks pop and one in some elusive species of country rock. The next track leaps into the present, utilizing rhythms that sound somewhat synthesized in the mode of David Gray. "The Hideout," having appeared also on a Starbucks coffeehouse compilation disc, has the feel of Neil Young circa Harvest, and becomes a powerful single with its heavy drum line, bold "fifths" chords, and strong chorus with a memorable hook. Moving on, the energy level quickly drops to a spare meditation, featuring vocal, guitar, subtle organ, and the dark psychology of the lyrics. This ebb and flow proves to be the experience throughout You Were Here. Songs may begin with a soft acoustic, then unfold assuredly toward their climax. Various instruments add character now and then, such as a muted trumpet or a harmonica, and the energy level can sway between a lullaby and full pop treatment with a definite destination. The music can also have a heavier edge, driven at times by a malcontent electric guitar. Throughout, the cello is a recurrent staple, as is Harmer's self-harmonized lead vocal. In conjunction with her sonorous, folky vibrato, the melodies are built of simplicity and sweetness, making it an easy album to latch onto. Produced by Harmer herself, along with Peter Prilesnik, You Were Here is keen to a number of musical influences. Her Canadian nationality notwithstanding, there is more than a whisper of Joni Mitchell or Ron Sexsmith in the music. Moments which might feel slow or meandering could likewise feel pensive, meditative, or gather interest from their potential to reveal something more. The lyrics are observational yet detached, and poetic without being arcane -- the album as a whole feels sincere, answering to a variety of moods and whims. It is a work of quality, from the songwriting clear to the production. ~ Lisa M. Smith, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Sarah Harmer originally intended her warmly intimate recording Songs for Clem as a gift for her father but eventually self-released the album to the general public, and later saw the album issued as part of her deal with Universal Canada. This was a stroke of quiet genius, since now dads everywhere -- and anyone else, really -- can revel in gorgeous, startlingly organic collection of country favorites and old standards, all rendered with back-porch flavor by Harmer and collaborator Jason Euringer. Clem feels lovingly handmade, with cover art right out of a child's Father's Day art project and an immediate, field-type recording quality that features accompaniment from crickets and a passing rainstorm. This isn't to say it's lo-fi; on the contrary, it's crystal clear. But the album's homey feel still seeps into every note. This is one of its great qualities, but the songs are pretty damn great, too. Harmer has a wonderful voice, and here she's given an opportunity to show its reedy beauty in a host of different styles. On "Tennessee Waltz" she's an acoustic countrypolitan songbird, but shifts to an easy-to-please, smoky jazz style for "Black Coffee." In addition to Harmer's and Euringer's voices and acoustic guitars, Clem is filled out by contributions from piano, trumpet, harmonica (on the campfire favorite "Oh Bury Me Not," complete with crickets), and a clarinet on "Just a Closer Walk With Thee," which also features a few friends on chorus vocals. It couldn't be more authentic if it was recorded at a Sunday Southern Baptist picnic. The hope of Nanci Griffith's bittersweet "Trouble in the Fields" is tinged with heartbreak, and the instrumental "O, My Beloved Father" closes Songs for Clem on a wistful, slightly melancholy note. But in between, there's a fun run through "You're Cheatin' Heart," the sultry favorite "Summertime," and an off-the-cuff, parlor version of "Sentimental Journey." That is, of course, if your parlor is on your back porch. Harmer's Songs for Clem will certainly appeal to fans of the singer's official debut, 2000's You Were Here. But it's a true sentimental journey for people inspired by their parents to love music. ~ Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
