VV Brown is a little irritating, perched on her Vespa, strumming her one-string guitar and brimming full of affectations but like GaGa, who's taken to wearing gimp masks during press conferences, these quirks are much easier to swallow when there's talent behind the persona. VV's got that, her brand of doo-wop indie (as she's calling it) is brimming full of charm, energy and generally catchy hooks but it feels as though she's fighting tooth and nail just to stay afloat long enough for her to get one designer but oh-so-retro stiletto in the door. Enter Shark in the Water, its Top 40 placing might just be a sign of the commercial tide finally turning in her favour. It's not hard to see why it has captured the public's imagination, it features an effervescence that matches that of the Tesco Fizzy Wine she was no doubt popping while listening to Sunday's Chart Show and it feels every inch the Summer Tune, all sunny with an irresistible fresh flavour and impressively big chorus. Then again, previous releases have hardly been alienating, the jaunty 50s swing of Crying Blood couldn't be more accessible, it's main hook is built on the Monster Mash for Goodness sake while Leave! is a break-up anthem that feels vaguely like Kate Nash's Foundations but more like an actual song (with a tear-jerking middle eight and string-drenched bridge) rather than a mardy diary entry. Why they didn't catch on, who knows (though some might point the finger at some Record Company pratfalls and a lack of support from Radio 1) either way, things are on the up and whether those singles climbed the charts or never saw the inside of the Top 100, they are indisputably charming and rather diverse (while clearly cohesive) tastes of what VV has to offer and they set the bar high for her debut album.Shame then, that Travelling like the Light kicks off in such unspectacular fashion with Quick Fix, a clattering up-tempo with a 60s rock and roll twist and Game Over, a confident kiss off which is so predictably soul-pop that it probably slipped out of Anastasia's haversack on her way to the studio. They're both amiable and catchy enough but wasn't the whole point of VV that she had something new to offer, or at least a new slant on an era not overly mined by current popstars and yet this is all a touch ordinary and worse still, forgettable. But then in swoops Bottles, with its menacing twang and clever take on '10 green bottles sitting on a wall' swiftly followed by the understated, dramatic flair of soulful mid-tempo Back in Time. And then there's the vintage crackle of I Love You, a stripped back, piano-led profession of love, that combines with a velvety vocal to create a lush and sumptuous respite from the toddler-post-SunnyD-binge-level of energy that has permeated this serving of musical mash potatoes (another one of VV's little descriptions, remember when I called her irritating earlier?). Just as the singles prove VV's ability to get the toe-tapping to her doo-wop swing, these songs see her more than capable of producing slick and coy pop with soulful flair. The peppy sway of Crazy Amazing continues the retro soul vibe of the singles and also includes a sweet sample of chopsticks which is a cute little touch and finally, on the title track she just shuts up and sings and it makes for a convincing and moving piano ballad. It's a sedate closer that's a far cry from the pained, top-of-her-lungs yelp that opened the album some 40 minutes previous.
A strong identity, a diverse vocal style, an ear for a hook and a certain way with words should all secure VV a place among La Roux and Florence as another surprise inhabitant of the upper echelons of the album chart. Travelling Like the Light's success, or possible lack thereof, will prove once and for all, if there really is a demand for Vanessa Brown the popstar. There certainly should be, the retro schtick is rarely intrusive or overbearing and songs on offer more than prove that VV's as exciting an addition to the pop charts as any of the many females who have shaped the sound of 2009 thus far. If those who follow her on Twitter, caught her on Jools Holland or read a positive review in their Sunday Broadsheet buy the album, all well and good but what VV needs is for people to add this album to their trolleys during their weekly shop at Asda. When the mass market speaks up the appropriate outlets should take notice and VV might just be met with the success she's craved, and many would argue, deserved from the start. If the record-buying public don't take to it, her next Twitter update might see her declaring that she's riding her Vespa into pop oblivion and that would be a crying shame...
