A couple of years ago a friend in London and avid myspacer emailed me about a female singer/songwriter she had seen performing live on her favourite website. Having never received an album to review and not being a Radio 1 or 2 fan, Pallot passed me by. Now sometimes this can be a good thing - preconceptions are often not helpful. My associate, an alternative rock DJ received Pallot’s latest album (no doubt to play alongside the metal bands he plays in his club…!) and passed it to me accompanied by some choice words which I cannot repeat here.

This is Pallot’s third album and after her first or second was dropped by the Polydor label (this label loses more good singer/songwriters than I’ve had hot dinners). We have previewed the album elsewhere on Shakenstir and included is Pallot’s story behind GRADUATE. Reading it I became confused as to her writing and performing style. She seemed to have more recently become a great fan of the Scissor Sisters and other pop acts, in addition to teaming up with some heavyweight pop producers/writers to create this new album. Is it folk or pop…?

Even after listening to the album several times I’m still not sure. Opening track ‘Everything’s Illuminated’ is your classic pop tune with big choruses and hooks, and sizeable production. It’s radio-friendly and sure to secure truckloads of airplay. For me, vin-ordinaire. ‘Real Start Starter’ adds a thumping (dance) rhythm, more expressive vocal performance and improved lyrics, while sustaining a strong melody and choruses.’The Right Side’ repeats the dose. ‘Human’ gets the acoustic treatment and with the help of some subtle orchestral string and piano passages, a more reflective, expressive vocal performance and even better lyrics, is the most impressive song so far.

‘I Don’t Want To Go Out’ is surefire radio fodder and charting single. It’s throwaway pop gibberish.

But suddenly things take a turn for the better, and if I were to guess what this lady was really like, the following songs would accurately reflect it. ‘Coming Home’ has a soul vibe, good lyrics and a strong element of distinction. ‘It Starts’ is even better with its climbing piano notes and contemplative vibe. It travels slowly and sensitively with a lovely melody underpinning a more modest instrumental arrangement, and moving lyrics. ‘When Did I Become Such A Bitch’ goes uptempo in a song-confessional that reveals enough to think that the lady’s serious about her music and future. It’s a song that could grace the stage in a theatre musical. ‘Cigarette’ is the album’s crowning glory and an ode to Pallot’s previous ‘habits.’ There’s a strong acoustic vibe in a song that is distinctive, distinguished and verging on the epic. The melody is incredibly strong, the vocal perfectly matches the song’s message; the instrumental arrangement and production are stunning. I like this one a lot and rate it as one of the best songs I’ve heard in 2009.

‘It Was Me’ completes the album with an arrangement that sounds like something out of a Barbra Streisand album. It’s a lovely, bittersweet ballad which Pallot sings in sincere and wondrous style, and ends the album on a very high note.

There is no doubt in my mind that this record could send Pallot to a higher level of popularity - it’s full to the gills with strong melodies and pop sensibility. Out of the ten songs there’s a couple of fillers and four that are outstanding. The rest are are frankly better than you’d find on a Lily Allen album. So, a bit of a mix and still a level of uncertainty about who this lady is and where she’s heading musically. It’s not going to be one of my albums of 2009, but it will come close enough for me to recommend it to you; a nearly must-have…

3.9/5