Liz Lawrence has some Irish blood, but probably not enough for us to claim her. ‘Bedroom Hero’ is a jaunty record with obvious comparisons thrown to a certain Ms. Marling. However, this only results in the failure to realise what’s special about Lawrence, and instead focus on what’s better about Marling.
There are no real standout moments on ‘Bedroom Hero’, it sails along swimmingly, but contains no dramatic waves that cause moment to pause.
Title track, Bedroom Hero, is exactly as you’d expect. Picture it; a warm breezy day, the camera pans through billowing net curtains to reveal a young songstress with huge headphones and a ukulele, writing songs in a notebook, using an actual pen, maybe a daisy chain on her head. Yeah, Bedroom Hero sounds a bit like that. The track has a great layer of pleasant harmonies, but lyrically, content such as “We were too drunk to remember those times”, fails at being edgy under such syrupy melodies. Oo Song is uplifting and spry, but similarly, “Why go to school when no one else bothers,” portrays rebellion with a tone of the girl in class who covers her test answers.
I’d Rather takes up the pace a little, but remains monotonous over a pleasing but generic beat. Lawrence’s voice is undoubtedly sublime, but her limited range could be exploited to something a bit less KT Tunstall.
Bathroom Spoons, and Give Me Comfort are folky clichés, blending the tried-and-tested, while Monday Morning talks about the intricacies of drinking cups of tea. Twee!
Littered with low-key harmonies, Black and Blue is a slow, concentrated highlight, with a tinge of atmosphere that shows us Lawrence’s potential. It grabs the attention, something that the rest of the album is begging for. It’s a suitable down-key moment after the upbeat riffs of One Day.
Fools Gold is a lacklustre closing track, attempting to elevate but ends up barely taking us off the floor. Lawrence’s voice is moody and sincere, the type of vocal that should work just by being. This collection however; struggles to exploit it. We’ve yet to hear the extent of Liz, so we can only be looking forward to what’s to come. She’s nice. She’s safe. She’s the equivalent of getting a lift from your parents over a motorbike ride with the sexy rebel from your class. A pleasant listen, but isn’t begging for the replay button.