EP Review: Jade Diary – Love Thy Will Be Done
Climbing the first rung of the ladder, ‘Landscape of Dreams’ brought Jade Diary to quite a few people’s attentions as the project successfully crowdfunded the money for a second EP to be recorded. Tipping a few years away in raising and recording, it will all undoubtedly seem worthwhile when ‘Love Thy Will Be Done’, the result of the hard work, is given it’s release in June.
Fans of Lady Antebellum and Taylor Swift’s charismatic take on country inspired pop should enjoy this collection of jangly, uplifting tracks, particularly the summery young love anthem,’Sublime’. Unsurprisingly, the title track isn’t a coincidentally named original composition, but is a glorious take on the Martika track, complete with an ideal production to put the emphasis on Cheryl Lim’s divine voice, shining at it’s best, conjuring a scriptural atmosphere that sits perfectly alongside the lyrics.
Cheryl’s voice is both captivating and emotive but the drawing point is it’s subtle nature. ‘Long Way From Home’ strips back the production to bring a focus tightly on the relatable story locked within the lyrics and sees her voice at it’s mesmerising best. With a haunting backdrop, ‘A Thousand Days’ sees Cheryl bringing the passion and honesty of Sarah McLachlan into her touching deliverance and easily sits as one of the standouts from the EP. Save for the enchanting drop of the chorus with it’s ambient beauty that reaches a perfect climax for it’s final rendition. This is songwriting at it’s best; an earnest message coated in a memorable hook and taken to new heights with the dedicated Lim at the helm.
Words: Simon McMurdo