Kelly Willis
Translated From Love
Release Date: Jun 26, 2007
Genre(s): Alternative, Country
Record label: Rykodisc
Music Critic Score
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Album Review: Translated From Love by Kelly Willis
Excellent, Based on 3 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
"Too Much to Lose" puts Robison's vocals in the mix, and is also laden with strings. It's a slow, simple tune, but Willis sings with great authority. The longing in her voice and in her lyrics never sacrificess her dignity. The '60s rock harmonies that introduce "The More That I'm Around You" are offset by the cheesy synth lines.
Based on rating B+
Kelly Willis, Austin’s alt-country heroine, produces kids more often than records now, so Translated From Love, her first in five years, is a treat in any emotional language. It’s disarming to hear such a winsome voice take on tough-minded material — like ”Nobody Wants to Go to the Moon Anymore” (a rocking farewell to abandoned baby-boom hope) or ”Teddy Boys” (a synth-pop ode to drunken male loutishness). But if you want your heart melted, head to the Jules Shear-cowritten love song that goes, ”I don’t know why I gotta have you but I do.” Our sentiments almost exactly.DOWNLOAD THIS: Don’t Know Why .
Opinion: Very Good
Since 2002's Easy, Kelly Willis has discovered unconditional love. The honeyed twang of the Austin songbird remains a hallmark on Translated, but the songs are forged with a more mature fire and relaxed tone. "Nobody Wants to Go to the Moon Anymore" sets the gamboling pace atop a cosmic steel guitar, while the unlikely cover of Iggy Pop's "Success" holds up well as a honky-tonk anthem backed by the Gourds, Willis laughing through the verses.