Every Girl I Know Deserves a Packet of Stars by Sophie Moleta

a Review by Amy Producer of Collected Sounds

Clunky album title aside, this is a wonderful record. I first heard Sophie Moleta when someone on a mailing of which I am a member, mentioned her. I went to either YouTube or MySpace (not sure) and really liked what I heard. So I made contact and said I'd like to review the record when it came out.

A few months later I got it and I've been listening to it quite a lot since.

Moleta has a lovely, soft, sort of deep, smooth voice. Her piano playing is superb.

The title track for some reason reminds me of some old 80s alternative ballads. It's probably the bass/keyboard line that lies underneath. I think the song is great, and the title is great, for a song, and makes perfect sense. It's just a little long for an album. But then again tell that to Fiona Apple…

One thing I love about this record in total is that Moleta has put together what I consider to be nearly perfect liner notes. She has photos, and tells us about each song. Where she was living at the time, where she wrote it, why she wrote it, where the ideas came from, when it was performed. The only thing I would add to make it perfect is the lyrics to all the songs (she does include the lyrics to the title song). You can also see the lyrics on her website.

"Te-Atawhai" is, I think, the first song I heard of hers. I immediately loved it. It's a very sweet song about the love she has for a child. The video is also included on the CD (and you can see it at YouTube, I'll embed it below).

This is a great record. This is how I know it's a classic for me: I am done with the review and should be moving onto another CD to review but I just keep wanting to hear this one again.

Posted on July 22, 2007