Reviewed by Andy Cooper

Terea' is a young lady from New Jersey who has been singing her way through life. And here is her first full album, of 11 songs. They are broadly urban R&B in nature, with some more traditional gospel influences revealed later in the project. The backing music is mostly programmed from computer and keyboard, providing the opening number "I Wanna Be" with a sharp but relaxed groove. Terea's voice rises clearly above the instrumentation, in a delicate yet striking manner. . .like a robin amongst a flock of pigeons! The following tracks, however, lack sparkle or emotion and are smothered with too many backing vocal parts (all performed by Terea' herself, so lacking the diversity offered by a seasoned BGV group). "He'll Never Leave" suffers a similar problem, in that the lyrics and music offer a comforting vibe to chill to, while the incessant tangling of the vocal lines leaves the listener a bit restless. There's actually not one instrumental break until the ninth track: one tasty guitar solo in a world created by keyboards and mice. "My Everything" and "Secret Place", with a more intimate setting, round off the collection. Though this style of music is not so perfect for Terea's voice, it shows her versatility and where she's coming from. She has talent that is worth further development.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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