Genre: Pop/Folk/Rock/Jazz/Country/Classical/Acoustic
Hometown: Southampton
Record Label: M J Music Ltd
Members:
Melissa Sullivan- Keyboards/Flute/Vocals
Dave Wilkes- Guitars
Dave Amey- Drums/Percussion
Ric Westwood – Clarinet/Sax
Ken Bryant – Bass
Review:
Melissa and More are a 5 piece band from Southampton. Consisting of Melissa, covering the vocals and being the focus of the band (it IS named after her), Dave Wilkes (guitar), Dave Amey (percussion), Ric Westwood (sax, clarinet) and Ken Bryant (bass). The band make music focusing on slow-classic rock, but also span into 80’s synthesiser ballads, jazz, folk and pop music. In this band it seems to me like the music comes in second to showcasing Melissa’s vocal quality and that it is merely a backing for her singing.
On their most popular single, ‘Screwed’, the music is a simple strumming of chords to the beat and the vocals add the overall substance to the song. Focusing on how modern living isn’t working for her and how everybody is ‘screwed’, Melissa paints a picture of a mundane life that makes me feel depressed just by listening to the song. The message she conveys is of how we are all living a robotic life and it’s not good for us. Other than telling us that we are all screwed by it, I can’t help but hope that she would have given us a solution rather than saying that we are all doomed.
Some of their songs, such as ‘Doing Fine’ and ‘Drunken Song’, are quite catchy when the band steps up to the plate and I quite enjoy listening to it. The vocal dominance and backing music in most of their songs may appeal to others. But, as I’m seeing them as a band I can’t help but think that the band should do more than add backing music to the majority of the songs.
Rate: 7/10
Andrew O’Donnell
THE END
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