Album ‘Restless Things’ is solid despite extra instrumentation

Plop yourself into the middle of any town with a music scene and there will never be a shortage of one particular genre: singer/songwriters.

Singer/songwriter is a genre that has become something of a joke, like “alternative” music or boy bands. The problem with it is that there are simply too many artists making songs, and a majority of them are utter crap. Every once in a while though, another artist comes along that actually has something to say. The kind of artists who sings songs because they mean them, not because they want a piece of the music-scene pie.

Amy Schmidt is one of these artists. She is a woman with something to say and the musical chops to say it in a compelling way. Her new album, “Restless Things,” is a prime example of what someone can do when they take a little conviction and a little heart and press it into a 4.7-inch plastic disc.

“Restless Things” is a simple thing. It is a collection of songs that were written during Schmidt’s stay in New Zealand, where she performed many of them at small, local taverns and pubs.

The small-town simplicity shines through on many of the songs. Even though many of them have been spruced up with other instruments and sounds, each seems as though it would lend itself perfectly to the sublime beauty of a woman’s voice and a guitar. And here’s where some problems start. A lot of the songs on “Restless Things” are bogged down by their extra instrumentation. It seems as though Schmidt knew her songs were solid, but either she or a producer felt that they needed something more. This is not the case.

Schmidt’s songs have powerful, heartfelt lyrics that, in most cases, are enough to carry the song. A simple guitar is all that is needed to garnish them, the extra instruments seem clunky and tacked on. This is no surprise, being partially recorded at Coda Record House, a studio that tends to lay a little heavy on the production side of things, muddying up some otherwise good songs.

Lyrically, Schmidt is solid. Her songs are real and her words are well suited to her voice. Her voice itself is delicate but adequate for getting the job done. While mostly personal, it is evident that some of the songs are recorded for audience benefit, which is always a nice touch, and keeps the album from becoming too egocentric, a common problem for singer/songwriters.

All in all, “Restless Things” is a good specimen of locally-based singer/songwriter music. It doesn’t get too wrapped up in itself and it has enough substance to keep it afloat in the bottomless pool that is its chosen genre. If Schmidt had been confident enough to let the rawness of the songs shine in the recordings, it would have bumped up the quality, but i t is still a solid first outing for her.

caseywelsch@

dailynebraskan.com