Songs Of Mass Destruction : Annie Lennox : Review : Rolling Stone

The title is overstated, but Songs of Mass Destruction does layer welcome muscle beneath the porcelain-smooth surface of Annie Lennox's voice. The result is an album that captures the range of her styles, from the rhythmically charged pop of her Eurythmics days to the haunted, longing ballads of her solo career. If the two approaches don't always cohere, each is satisfying in its own right.

The album was produced by Glen Ballard, who is best known for his work with Alanis Morissette and the Dave Matthews Band. He roughens up Lennox's sound -- as on "Ghosts in My Machine," which rides an irresistible, staccato synth riff. "Womankind" is a self-esteem booster, while "Sing" gathers a coterie of female vocalists -- including Madonna, Dido and Joss Stone -- to raise awareness about mother-child HIV transmission in Africa. That the song doesn't collapse under its good intentions is a tribute to its sturdy pop craft -- a virtue in more than ample supply on this sparkling album.

Anthony DeCurtis

(Posted: Oct 4, 2007)

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Songs of mass destruction

Has it been a dark road that has carried Annie Lennox all the way from the new wave pop of the 80s Eurythmics to a stellar solo career? Well there may have been some somber moments and dark corners but Songs of Mass Destruction (SOMD) in spite of its somewhat depressing and prophetic title, offers a lot of variety, the whole encapsulated in Lennox’s beautiful, soaring voice. Many commentators rightly state that this is the best instrument in the piece.

SOMD opens with the single, Dark Road, which amply demonstrates Annie’s range. It is dark but at the same time rich in tonal quality and provides the listener with an indication of the quality still to come. If you love Annie’s voice, you will love Dark Road and Through the glass darkly.

Next comes Love is Blind a joyous piece of pop that Annie belts out and which also includes a very enjoyable rap.

Then, getting a little deeper into the tangled and powerful emotions that surround a breakup comes the slow burner “Smithereens.” At first it seems like a less interesting track but then begins to grow on the listener with repeated listens. It is now a favourite.

Ghosts in my machine kicks the tempo back up again and has an infectious chorus that the listener wants to sing along to, addresses imperfect humanity, which is a general theme of the album overall and leads to Womankind which flies the feminist banner high, again offers a slice of rap and is something that you will want to or can’t help singing along to, whether man or woman!

Through the glass darkly is a soaring ballad that underlines the pain of emotional despair and fully showcases Annie’s wonderful voice. Many have said that the album is worth its price for this track alone. Lost is also powerfully sung and has become one of my favourites on the disc. I love the layered vocals and the high notes that Annie reaches.

Sing is OK and is similar to a chant with African accents and an announcement at its start that the song has been created to support a charity trying to prevent Mother-Child transmission of AIDS/HIV, a worthwhile cause to support. Annie’s voice outshines and outpowers the chorus of “equals.”

Big Sky is a big interesting ballad and Fingernail Moon rounds the set off in a reflective frame of mind having a very relaxing feel to it and adventuresome lyrics.

Annie has done a good job in SOMD and I am looking forward to her next.