After three years, the Australian singer-songwriter Sia is back. On her tenth album, Reasonable Woman, she once again showcases her fantastic vocals. Add her songwriting skills and a strong album is born. Nevertheless, Reasonable Woman is not as memorable as her previous work.
Sia’s career took a huge leap in 2014. From a few scattered hits like Clap Your Hands to a monster hit with Chandelier. What followed was This Is Acting: an album full of songs written for big names like Adele and Rihanna. In hindsight, perhaps these were Sia’s glory days.
This doesn’t mean, however, that Sia has lost her touch. Expectations were just too high after This Is Acting. A Christmas album, Everyday Is Christmas, and the supergroup LSD with Diplo and Labrinth followed. Next, the singer focused on making a film with Music as the result. A film that received a lot of criticism for casting the non-autistic Maddie Ziegler in the lead role. The accompanying album was therefore overshadowed.
What the Christmas album and Music did prove, is that Sia never forgot how to write songs. This continues on Reasonable Woman. The album that was announced three years ago, but only now sees the light of day. It’s nice to hear new music bu Sia again. All new songs prove that Sia is indeed a musician and songwriter at heart. However, the album as a whole is not as memorable as 1000 Forms of Fear or This Is Acting.
Collaborations
Reasonable Woman is largely written and produced with Greg Kurstin and Jesse Shatkin. Collaborations she has engaged in before and which have not been unsuccessful. They both played a significant role in creating Chandelier. Besides Sia, both have other major albums and songs to their names. Kurstin is responsible for Adele’s success with 25 and 30, and Shatkin has worked with Pink, Jennifer Lopez, and Lily Allen, among others. Not the least of names in popmusic.
However, Kurstin and Shatkin fail to produce a new hit for Sia. Even the many features on Reasonable Woman don’t achieve this. Kylie Minogue, Labrinth, rappers Tierra Whack, Kaliii, and Jimmy Joliff, Paris Hilton, and Chaka Khan have been enlisted. Nice to have them, but not all of them leave a memorable impression. With Kylie, Dance Alone is an attempt to bring a new Padam Padam into the world. It’s catchy and certainly danceable but hasn’t caught on yet. LSD already showed that Sia and Labrinth’s voices blend very well together. This collaboration continues on Incredible.
The presence of musical legend Chaka Khan produces an iconic song. The two powerful, female vocals bring Immortal Queen to life. On the other hand, Paris Hilton’s contribution to the catchy Fame Won’t Love You fades. A song that, lyrically, is one of the strongest on this album. It must be said, Hilton, with her thin voice, does have the courage to stand next to the vocal powerhouse that is Sia.
Fragile
It has been mentioned several times before, but Sia’s voice is what you look forward to when you put on an album by the singer. Fortunately, she hasn’t left it at home. Reasonable Woman is full of variations. From an uptempo number to a fragile power ballad. Her voice can handle anything. But it’s the fragile songs that make this album what it is.
That Sia has a wide range is known. That she doesn’t hesitate to push the boundaries, too is known. This results in I Forgive You being the best song on the album. The raw edges of her voice are so fragile they almost break. A truly spine-chilling moment. Same goes for I Had A Heart. A song where Sia can completely let loose. Add the lyrics about a recent divorce, and the freedom is clearly audible.
On Reasonable Woman, you won’t find a new Titanium or Chandelier. However, it’s definitely not an album to skip. Both lyrically and vocally, the singer proves she’s still here. With some musical highlights, Sia delivers a good album.
