Siberia

The sophomore album from Canadian singer LIGHTS is grittier and rawer than her debut, with a strong dubstep influence. The vocals are pretty, clean, and clear, but not outstanding. However, the mix of synths, heavy dubstep-inspired bass lines, and melodic singing is quite interesting sonically. Sounds like Passion Pit, Ellie Goulding? No FCCs detected. Recommended: 5, 8, 12, 14. 7 or 10 if you’re looking for something slow.

1. 4:19: Lyrically the same idea as Vanessa Carlton’s A Thousand Miles “Where the wind is cold and angry / there you’ll be to take me inside … I don’t care if we suddenly find ourselves in Siberia” – that is too say, not very interesting. But the mood and atmospherics are pretty cool, and it’s a decent melody.
2. 3:24: Heavily dubstep influenced. Nothing especially stands out on this track.
3. 3:38: Pretty singing in a relatively high register. Anthemic.
4. 4:00: Downtempo, hopeful, pretty.
5*. 3:16: Uptempo. Includes a snippet of auto-tune. Verses build to a strong, intense chorus.
6. 3:21: Long intro, then a rather formulaic – yet also quite sweet – paean to her lover. Good melody.
7. 3:24: Downtempo, very soft, with minimal instrumentals. Some of her best vocal work.
8*. 4:05: Uptempo. Unique use of chimes, which contribute to the magical mood. Some dubstep-influenced beats, with a dubstep drop at 2:37. Really cool song.
9. 3:28: Uptempo. Lyrics on the versus are sort of sing-rapped– it’s not full out singing, but not just talking either. Dubstep drop at 1:58, which ends rather abruptly at 2:10 for the more downtempo and softer close of the song.
10. 4:42: Downtempo. Calming and soothing both musically and lyrically (“when I fall asleep I feel you with me”).
11. 8:57: Pretty downtempo. Purely instrumental. Some bagpipe in there, scratchy synths, electronic beeps, etc.
12*. 3:19: Great synths that really stand out. Really pretty, melodic singing.
13. 3:55: Scratchy, raw, and angry sections fade into softer, prettier sections, and then back again. 37 second guest rap verse starting at 2:47.
14*. 3:21: Really pretty. Singing is all out, but the song overall is still relatively calm. Rap guest verse from 2:16 – 2:37.
-Mir