Lauren Mann and the Fairly Odd Folk

The mindset that good news doesn't sell permeates our cynical culture. Thankfully, Alberta's Lauren Mann and her band, the Fairly Odd Folk, aren't afraid of taking the high road. With bandmates Jay and Jessica Christman and Zoltan Szoges, along with producer Aaron Marsh, Mann has created a lovely collage of catchy pop with folk sensibilities. Over Land and Sea's vibrant sonic tapestry is saturated with sunlight and holds to a mostly buoyant gait. Even during slower moments and pensive musings, Mann's melodies and verses remain uplifting, staying true to her purpose. She sings about restoring strained relationships rather than tossing them out ("Love, I Lost") and waiting patiently for beauty and purpose to unfold in life ("Like the Mist"). She also tugs at filial affections, urging her listeners to invest their heart and soul into raising children of virtue and integrity ("Lullaby") and honouring the memory of lost loved ones by living fully and without regrets ("Of Life and of Death"). Over Land and Sea is an impressive debut for Lauren Mann; it proves that songs don't have to be angry, whiny or snivelling to be compelling, and that love and hope can inspire art as beautiful, if not more so, as what pain or loss is capable of conjuring.