Maria
My Soul
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Though Denmark-born beauty Maria takes an active role in My Soul -- serving as executive producer and co-writing all of the songs -- she's not quite ready to compete with heavyweights like Beyonce, Mya and Christina Aguilera. Her confessional tracks swim in accusatory lyrics, heavy drums, ethereal string arrangements, pensive keyboards and the occasional electronic sequence, but they suffer from a degree of sameness. The hulking beats and restrained, breathy vocals of the title track melt too easily into songs like the chorus-heavy ballad, "I Give, You Take," creating one long, gooey sonic trip that dominates half the record. It isn't until the brooding "Always" that Maria takes a chance
Read More by straying from the vocal formula. Other darker tracks -- like the leering "Nowadays" and the danceable "I Hate to Love You" -- also leave a lingering mark and suggest that Maria has the depth, chutzpah and hunger to be a contender. KERRY SMITH
(September 29, 2003)
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