Boy, was I surprised! Like many of you, the only indication I had of Deborah Fatow's music was the track "You Are All I Need" from the HM CD Sampler from the Jan/Feb issue. This song has the vocal histrionics of an Ann Wilson meets Alanis Morrissette a la Wendy Bailey. Once I tracked Submerged all the way through, I heard a variety that spans several stylings. Tunes like "Tell Me Friend" and "My Wall" conjure up the fun but stylish sounds of a Miss Angie. "My Wall" has some cool Collective Soul-like guitars. "1722" have some most excellent guitar tones as well. "I Don't Belong" marries some cool echo vocalizing with a tension-building drum beat. "I Hear You Crying" is one of the only musical weak points, as it's a touching ballad that never quite punches the "Go!" button, though. Lyrically, "My Wall" is a song about forgiveness, and here Deborah lets loose a bit of an Alanis yodel, but lest you think this is just another Christian industry copycat, listen to the rest. Her stellar voice, at times, has the delicate real world strength of Plumb's Tiffany Arbuckle, and in "You Are All I Need" that strength is multiplied. It's also a blessing to have Nailed's Scotty Hoaglan handling guitars (and half the songwriting), as the man is quality inside and out, and the way he piles on the beef is most impressive no matter what band he's playing with.
Similar sounding releases
2000SkyparkOverbluecity
1999Room Full of WaltersEl Grande
1998Poor Old LuChrono (1993-1998)
1996Seven Day JesusThe Hunger
1996The Mustard SeedsThe Mustard Seeds
1997Reflescent TideSpring Catalog
