Camille Bloom's "Never out of Time"
Camille Bloom navigates through the ordinary ups and downs of the human experience on her new “Never out of Time,” and her challenge is to avoid sounding ordinary. That’s a tall order for the Seattle-based acoustic-rock singer-songwriter, given all the acoustic-rock singer-songwriters out there doing exactly the same thing.
Yet she sometimes succeeds.
Bloom mostly works through anger, hurt and frustration — some of the most difficult emotions for a singer-songwriter to wrangle if she doesn’t want to sound strident and off-putting. She dresses up her strong but conventional vocal (a la Jonatha Brooke) with such inventive instrumental touches as playing glockenspiel and having cellist Jessika Kitzman in her band that includes the traditional guitarist, bass player and drummer.
Bloom also incorporates humor, energy and curveballs as she has a fit at a self-absorbed, user/loser friend (the seeming impatience of the music befitting her lyrics on “Just Because I’m a Friend”), struts through the playful theatrics of “Here You Come Again” (about a relationship packed with give and take) and nervously blurts out lyrics in an am-I-losing-my-mind “Top of My Game?” supported by a “hand clapping troupe.”
She even manages to relate poignant reflection by observing the chips and stains of an old mug on “All of These Stains.”
Still, “Never out of Time” founders in cliches, generic indignation on “I Know You Know I Know,” generic gloom on “Running Out of Time,” generic anger on “Why?” ... mundane moodiness that will leave some listeners reeling from the negativity.
The improbable “bonus track” “Teeny Car” is an endearing, album-closing bright spot, an electro-funk about-face where she jokes about her little vehicle (“So small I barely fit”) and basically just cuts loose.
So at least she doesn’t leave you feeling depressed.
Rating: 3 stars (out of five)
© 2012, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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