Review – Julie Crochetiere

By: Remington Fioraso

Album – Counting Dreams
iTunes Link – https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/counting-dreams/id835947139
Release Date – May 6, 2014
Label – Vega Musique/Universal

Julie Crochetiere’s latest album ‘Counting Dreams’ will be released on May 6. Crochetiere recorded her fourth studio album in the same city she was born and raised in – Montreal, Quebec.The album’s tracklisting consists of nine original songs and two covers.

When I first listened to “Counting Dreams”, I was immediately drawn in to the absence of autotune within the finished product. Instead, the powerful and beautiful voice of Julie Crochetiere was emphasized and full of emotion. From the first song ‘Who’s Gonna Love Me (Like You Did)’ to the final ‘For All We Know’, Crochetiere displays her raw vocal talents. Occupying her vocals is the Quatuor Orphee, a Quebec-based string quartet, with string arrangements by Robin Smith. The instrumentals consist of a small rhythm section, strings and a harp. While simplistic, it is the simplicity and authenticity of the recordings that make ‘Counting Dreams’ stand out. The combination of the vocals and instrumentals captivate the listener throughout the entire album.

It is difficult choosing a single song that stood out for me. The songs that I found myself replaying the most were ‘Who’s Gonna Love Me (Like You Did)’, ‘Over the Rainbow’, ‘My Sinking Heart’, and ‘Counting Dreams’. However, there are evidently no filler tracks on the album. It is easy to just let the tracks continue to the end and not touch the fast-forward button or key to move to the next track.

If you enjoy soul, jazz, or simply slower-paced songs that are good to listen to when you are chilling out, I would highly recommend checking out ‘Counting Dreams.’

Rating:
4.5/5

Julie Crochetiere on Social Media:
http://www.juliec.com/
https://www.facebook.com/JulieConline
https://twitter.com/juliecmusic
https://www.youtube.com/user/juliecrochetiere