Why do we frequent coffee shops? Of course for the reward of a hot, frothy, morning treat after forking over a hefty ransom of cash. But other than that, we continue to visit our favorite java haunts to experience its traditional ambience; the dim, cool, lighting and low ceilings, the hip people and comfy couches, and, naturally, for the easy listening soundtrack playing just audibly over the roaring of an espresso machine. Such is the setting of Holly Miranda’s The Magician’s Private Library.
Miranda’s solo debut delivers plenty of blue in the sense that you could refer to many of the tracks on this album as the sound of sleep for its dream-like aspirations. Miranda, who has been compared to the likes of Cat Power and Norah Jones, falls just an inch or two short from these icons of mood tunes in the sense that while The Magician’s Private Library is sleek — and even original — it becomes weary a short ways in. Take it however you like, but this is what makes “Magician” a nice backdrop for a cooler setting, and not something that you would like to slip into your road trip mix (lest risk drifting off).
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Not to undermine the genius of Holly Miranda. It’s just her earlier work, dating back to material she put out during her time with the Jealous Girlfriends, was more raw emotion than The Magician’s Private Library, which pales in comparison, even flirting with mainstreamed commercialism. That said, there are definitely some standout tracks on this album. For example, “Forest Green Oh Forest Green,” “High Tide,” and the surprisingly catchy “Everytime I go to Sleep.”
In conclusion, The Musician’s Private Library is a calming compilation of surrealism by Holly Miranda. And perhaps, being her first work as a solo artist, can serve as a building block off of which to evolve her budding career.
(XL Recordings 304 Hudson Street, 7th Floor, New York, 10013)