incarnations

I have been reading a lot of rave reviews of Kitchie Nadal's new album LOVE LETTER starting with the nifty album design, to the great production, great songwriting and new sound, and most especially the beautiful voice of Kitchie. Everyone knows how scary and difficult it is to come out with a sophomore album lalo na if the debut is as successful as her "Kitchie Nadal"--dang, how do you top that! But Kitchie apparently is not mindful of the commercial success (problema na ni ms. roca yun hehe) and just strove to come out with the album SHE wants. Overseeing everything herself, from art directing to arranging and recording, she had no intention of producing a sleek album "designed" to become platinum but rather chose to put her self out there, unabashedly displaying her spiritual and personal side. This album is indeed her love letter to us who have been waiting patiently for this CD for years. But more importantly, it is Kitchie's fragrant offering to her God, a musical public declaration of her convictions. well done, Kitchie! :)

I struggled to pick my favorite track but couldn't--it's like asking a parent to choose a favorite child haha! The closest to being "the one" was the Tagalog song TADHANA probably because I have been hearing Kitchie sing a couple of lines from the song since years ago as an intro to her live performances of Wag Na Wag Mong Sasabihin when Tadhana was still unfinished.

"minsan nagbiro sa 'yo ang tadhana, o bakit pa binigay sa yo kung babawiin lang?"

I am a sucker for Tagalog songs and the melody is very catchy plus the arrangement they made is so beautiful, it was done sans the techno sounds of the other tracks and treated like a regular love song, Kitchie's soulful voice accompanied by an acoustic guitar, much like the classical version of WNWMS they did last year for the DQTV EP.

 

I settled on picking my top 5 tracks:
- Walk On Water
- Wide Awake
- Tadhana
- Takipsilim
- Love Letter

Aaaargh, can i make that a top 7 list?! Add Lala Land and Unconditional Love... ang hirap! :) Together this set of songs showcases Kitchie's new sound. They are a bit edgier than the rest of the tracks.

I love WALK ON WATER which is yes, as the title implies, about faith and to me it sounds autobiographical ("I am a human shooting star...").

I realize that these songs were also among the first tracks she wrote for the album, they were written years ago kasabay ng BUWAN. Somewhere along the way towards the end of recording, Kitchie's songs became, as she puts it, "more positive" -- they sounded happier! And why not, Kitchie does look happier now, and less introverted. Indeed during the Listers' Night last April 5 I was surprised to see a different Kitchie--i was amused to watch her candidly answering ALL the questions from the fans, playful, smiling all night. Peace written all over Kitchie's face. :)

It's not that i do not like the happy songs, I just like my music a bit dark. :)

Kitchie Nadal's LOVE LETTER was worth the wait and does not disappoint: it is innovative, bold, new, well-produced--a must-buy. It comes out at a time when remakes are again starting to make a comeback and foreign acts are making stopovers here in Manila promoting their albums. It's great to hear that aside from Kitchie lot of new albums from OPM acts are getting released lately.

Kitchie's songwriting appeals to my mind, her music trips my soul. Kitchie's vocals still rocks me to my core, sigh.