By Elle B
Deep Dark Down and Blue is an album recently released by Connie Lansberg, an Australian jazz singer based in Melbourne. Connie is joined by some of Melbourne’s leading musicians on the album, such as her long-time musical collaborator Mark Fitzgibbon. Written, composed, arranged, and performed by Connie, this album is a tour de force and a showcase of her talent and skills.
Aside from being an experienced jazz artist, Connie is also a published author. Her background in literature lends tremendous amounts of depth to this album. Simply put, her lyrics are poetry; her voice transports us through each track as a different scenario unfolds, each one a complete story with its’ own themes, characters and central messages. Each song bears the same themes of secrets, heartache, dreams and the buzz of the unknown, connecting each track into one complete, satisfyingly symmetrical body of work.
“As an author, I love the long-form, but as a songwriter, there’s nothing more thrilling than summing up the difficult, the wonderful, the terrifying and exhilarating feeling of falling in or out of love in a 4- minute soliloquy accompanied by these talented musicians.”
The album opens with Better Things, where we are introduced to Connie’s uniquely soft, delicate voice. In this opening track, Connie focuses on leaving behind time-wasters, valuing the simple things in life, and allowing these pleasures to help heal the pain of a failed relationship – ‘’I have better things to do, have to watch the garden grow, make angels in the virgin snow.’’
With Deep Dark Down and Blue, the title track, Connie speaks directly to the listener and outlines the purpose of this song – it’s not for everyone, she explains, especially not those ‘’young, wild and free’’. Deep, dark, down and blue is not only how she describes herself, but also how she describes what she holds dearest. The lyrics are full of vivid imagery of all these things deep, dark down and blue that she loves so much – like the sea, the sky and her lover’s eyes.
One of the album’s standout tracks is Lonely Passion, a song that hums with a bossa nova beat. It is a soliloquy of reflection on Connie’s journey and where she finds herself now – ‘’in a maze of lonely passion, I lost my inner sense’’. A deep and sensitive expression, detailed eloquently and enhanced by the instrumentals. This track is certainly full of passion, with Connie wearing her heart on her sleeve in a raw display of emotion, perfectly framed within a smooth jazz arrangement.
Taking the form of a musical collection of short stories, Deep Dark Down and Blue is a treat for anyone who enjoys good storytelling set to the sounds of silky jazz, with touches of folk, blues, and soul.
