Album Review: Diana Krall – Turn Up The Quiet
2 min read
Fourteen albums in to her long and illustrious career, Diana Krall is showing no signs of stopping. With a US tour pencilled in already, Turn Up The Quiet indicates that Diana’s smooth voice remains very much in demand.
The plucked bass intro to Like Someone In Love would not sound out of place opening a TV show. Diana Krall’s hushed tones lack passion and drive for someone supposedly singing to their lover. Jazz is a tough cookie to delve into, and Isn’t It Romantic provides one of the album’s more accessible moments. The understated delivery is soft and warm, making it an ideal song for weddings and other such romantic occasions.
Any child of the 90s will remember L-O-V-E from classic movie The Parent Trap, here given a subtle makeover to showcase it as a timeless classic. Once again though, Krall’s held back style could be mistake for apathy rather than maturity. Night And Day opens with a delightfully led classical intro, that encapsulates the beauty of the jazz genre. Krall has a wise quality to her voice that expels wisdom and knowledge, making it impossible to argue with the quality of her sound.
I’m Confessin’ (That I Love You) and Blue Skies are noticeably more modern takes from Krall’s extensive list of favourite songs. The impassioned piano melodies and jauntier guitar lines are well-timed at this mid-section where there was a real danger of Krall fading into the ether before her album has even finished playing.
Sleep is a recurring theme as Turn Up The Quiet comes to a close, with Dream and I’ll See You In My Dreams covering similar romantic ideals. The former errs a little too much on the blasé side, whereas the former picks up the energy to a more suitable level. It’s a shame the tempo of the record reaches it’s highest point on the final track, as there were moments throughout in need of similarly big finishes.
Jazz is quite the overlooked genre these days, not many artists manage to break out of the jazz bubble and attain mainstream recognition. Whilst Turn Up The Quiet is an eclectic mix of classics delivered with skill, the lack of new vantage points limits the reach and potential for Krall’s obvious talent. Turn Up The Quiet is the ideal record for fancy dinner parties and sophisticated soirees but; unfortunately, not much else.
