Emmy Rossum
Inside Out
Geffen Records
Emmy Rossum is best known for her acting abilities in such movies as The Phantom of the Opera, Mystic River and the crappy Poseidon. Now, she is trying her singing chops out on her debut Inside Out. It could be a train wreck, but Rossum shows that she can actually sing.
On the title track, she channels her inner Sarah McLachlan and creates a wistfully airy track with generic metaphorical lyrics like, “Unsew my seams, look inside if you dare/ Do you still like what you’re seeing now?” These lyrics taken literally, I think, as a married man I can safely say, “Yes! Yes, I do like what I would be seeing.” Umm… where was I? Oh yeah, her music.
She does her best Enya impersonation on the opener “Slow Me Down.” The song incorporates more than 150 different vocal parts all sung by Rossum herself. That’s impressive.
Inside Out is a strange brew of pop and new age, but Emmy Rossum does a good job of balancing the two and making a decent record. She also showcases a surprisingly wide vocal range throughout the album, especially on “The Great Divide.” This album isn’t going to win any awards, but it’s much better than I anticipated. It also doesn’t hurt to have several photos of Rossum in the liner notes.
Emmy Rossum: http://www.emmyrossum.com
