Flags

Rate It! Avg: 4.5 (36 ratings)
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Flags album cover
Album Information

Total Tracks: 11   Total Length: 45:21

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Brilliant and underrated...

Jeb

Brooke Fraser is one of those stars who's huge in other parts of the world but plays smallish rooms to devoted crowds here, and it's really not fair. "Flags" is a supreme effort; very much distinct from not only modern pop radio but also the typical crop of American/Canadian singer-songwriters. Her distinctive voice is made for her storyteller's style of songwriting. Some of those songs are delightfully and/or tragically narrative, while others are deep emotional explorations. Her duet with Aqualung on "Who Are We Fooling" sounds like it's written for the stage, quiet and sad. Other songs are like footballer sing-alongs with choruses just made for big groups, and the poppy, slightly tropical-tinged "Jack Kerouac" is a great drop of sunshine in the middle of the album. Highly recommended, and an outstanding follow-on to her previous work.

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They Say All Music Guide

Like Lisa Mitchell and Missy Higgins, Brooke Fraser is far more popular down under than abroad, where her breezy pop/rock has yet to gain a serious foothold. Flags, her third record, may be the one that finally nets her an international audience. Inspired by Fraser’s move to Los Angeles, it’s a well-worn singer/songwriter album, with songs that take their cues from the Lilith Fair movement and L.A.’s burgeoning Hotel Café scene. Fraser knows how to craft a sturdy pop hook, and there are many of them here — particularly during “Something in the Water,” which became her first Kiwi chart-topping hit in October 2010. Elsewhere, she stretches her boundaries by focusing on ambience and atmospheric textures, even evoking a young Fumbling Towards Ecstasy-era Sarah McLachlan during “Ice on Her Lashes.” – Andrew Leahey

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