Soul Tattoos
Carlin Joie Belof
Soul Tattoos is the debut work from this talented and very accomplished Canadian artist: of the five songs on the CD, four are her own (the fifth - Gonna Get Close To You, by Lisa Dalbello, has been included to demonstrate the extraordinary range and power of Carlin's voice. I don't know the original, but when I heard this version my first impression was of an astonishing voice, something like a cross between Siouxie and Tori Amos!).
The songs are an interesting mix. Carlin's lyrics are very personal, but refreshingly free of clichés and self-indulgence. They can also be quite startling:
Self flagellation is painful
Yet I do it almost every day....
Just thinking of the flame
Always gets me burned....
I'm either overly busy
Or totally bored
As I try not to face
All the ghosts that I've stored....
These are lines from Self Destruction - which, despite its title, is actually a cheerful, catchy number that's ideal to sing along with! (Apparently, it assumed this form as a quirky - and in my opinion wryly intelligent - way of exorcising those well-known, personally destructive demons...)
This fascinating dichotomy between the subject matter and the music itself seems to be typical of Carlin. Drowning in Temptation, the first track, is rich and densely textured, yet sung in a dry, almost tired, voice - to start with at any rate. But even towards the climax of the song, when a less restrained singer might resort to histrionics, the emotion is tightly reigned, as though Carlin is fighting to retain control. It adds real punch to an already intense song.
To the Sea (my personal favourite) is a lyrical, melancholic tribute to inevitability - which nevertheless demands a rethink of accepted concepts of modern life -:
Does the rat race ever get won?...
Is value really so absolute?...
Contradiction adds spice to life...
Fighting for the best in life
Choose your weapon
Word or knife?
The Best Ones is perhaps the least 'unusual' track on the CD. At first glance, it seems to be nothing more than a simple song about unrequited love and resignation. In fact, it's an affirmation of strength and self-confidence - without the vindictiveness that often goes with such situations. And the chorus is great -
The say the best ones are taken
Maybe that's true
But I deserve the best and honey
That sure isn't you...
Carlin Joie has a superb voice, strong, sexy and haunting, beautifully enhanced by the other, very skilful, musicians on the CD. Although her own songs on Soul Tattoos serve as an excellent illustration of her songmaking abilities, I would have liked to have heard something perhaps a little more vocally challenging: she certainly has the range, self-assurance and talent! Perhaps on the next work....
A few copies of Soul Tattoos are still available from Carlin. Please email her at -
("Soul Tattoos are the experiences that everyone goes through that leave their impressions indelibly imprinted on their souls: the things that make them who and what they are...")
© 1999 WordWrights.