Creative people sometimes find their way into different mediums by accident. I think rarely does anyone in a creative field just happen to decide this is what I want to be and then they do it. They have to be called to it in one way or another. I gather this was the case for New York singer/songwriter Virginia Marcs, who started performing off Broadway before she began writing and playing songs of her own. It was a guitar from her sister that Marcs says was the catalyst for her songwriting career.
Marc’s debut record, Climbing the Wall sounds a lot like what I’ve come to expect from a debut record by a singer songwriter. The lyrics are fragile and a bit vague at times. There is a want for everything to mean something more than it really does. I think for the most part that first time singer/songwriters are just tracing and imitating those who they look up to in hopes of maybe sounding vaguely like them. I have played this imitation game before myself. But after a long time and many years of doing it wrong I finally realized that I couldn’t try to sound or be like anyone else. That was just a ruse, a cover to keep me from becoming myself. I don’t mean to confuse influence here, for influence is a huge part of growing an artist. But so is taking risks and that is something that Marc’s hasn’t really done on Climbing the Wall. The opening track “Wild” takes a steady build of acoustic guitar and some ethereal background noise which was rather run of the mill. However what sticks out, and in my opinion is most important, are Marcs’ vocals, which are as beautiful as the first birds of morning. This is where her talent lies, as she shows she can hit notes both low and high with a relative ease. She belts out operatic styled vocals on the relatively shoulder shrugging heartbreak protest song “Poison.” Later on “You Were Right” her vocals sound as good if not better than anything you’re gonna hear someone on the radio whose getting paid a lot more. To me Climbing the Wall is the quintessential first album. I think with the right band, or perhaps less effects, that Marcs’ next record could be something much rounder and even more authentic. Marcs has talent, that’s not the problem, but surrounding yourself with other talented people whose talents are different than yours never hurt anyone’s chances of getting better. Musical history is full of famous partnerships.
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