Sara Jackson Holman
When You Dream
Expunged Records
8/10

As all things musical go, Sara Jackson Holman is an infant. No, not literally. But considering that the poet-musician’s career literally sprung out of nowhere thanks to luck and the good folks at Expunged Records (to say little of MySpace!), it’s an serendipitous one. Despite Holman’s stroke of luck, her music is anything but a flash in the pan. With a mixture of classical piano, playful lyrics, and a soulful voice reminiscent of KT Tunstall or early Norah Jones, Holman has managed to craft a debut album that is at times quirky, sensuous and just plain silly. The result is an album that is anything but maudlin.

The first track “Come Back to Me,” an eccentric mix of frenzied piano and offbeat lyrics, gives off an air of, well, peculiarity. But that would be misleading. With an array of songs borrowing from sources as diverse as Austrian waltzes, Vaudeville tunes, and American pop, at times Holman could be as superficial as Tin Pan Alley, or as deep and emotional as the most rueful European folk tune. Case in point? “To Anna,” a moving track that is equal parts wistful and Romantic.

Though a newcomer, if When You Dream is any indication, Holman ‘s trajectory will be more like a hockey stick than a series of steps.

For more information, please check out  <a href=http://www.myspace.com/sarajacksonholman> Sara’s Myspace page.</a>

–Jack Winn