EP REVIEW: NEEVE ZAHRA - BREAKUP BREAKDOWN

Having given Neeve Zahra's debut EP, the accolade of being one of the best UK Country debut EP's ever, #TEAMw21 thought it was worth a quick revisit before diving into her latest release. Like a fine wine it is ageing perfectly, and we stand by every word we said at the time, if anything we undersold it! It did of course set an impossible bar to surpass.

All of which leads us to "Breakup Breakdown", Neeve's second collection of songs. As the play on words in the EP title suggests, there is a theme running through the material as we journey through the stages of a break up. It is also safe to say that the only time Neeve sits on the fence is on the cover picture where she looks a little precariously balanced in her hat, boots and flowing dress.

"Love & Hate" sets the EP in motion with a inviting guitar riff over a cracking pop country sound, and as this is the opening stage of a relationship break up, we are in "Anger & Denial". The opening verse clearly covers the denial as Neeve seems willing to forgive virtually anything

"You missed my birthday and valentines

But I imagined the card you’d write

And I still fall for those silly lines

Like they were true"

Neeve is always the mistress of an insistent harmony and the lead in, and chorus of "Love & Hate" are a treat as her vocals rise and fall.

"Coz you got me at the right place wrong time

And when I talk to you there's a fine line

Between love and hate

I’m hesitating why am I still coming down from you

And everyday I contemplate

Why am I still coming

Back to you?"

The exit from the verse sees Neeve sweetly singing and extending the words "to you" in time to the guitar line, just to reinforce it further.

The next verse would seem to cross many red lines in a relationship, yet even as it seems that things have reached breaking point the following verse sees doubt return again

"You’re smashing drinks spilling coffee cups

And telling me that I’m not enough

I think we’re finally out of luck

Sad but it’s true"

A mixture of guitars and percussion already make this a little classic, but the bridge sees Neeve's vocals step up another level, in a section that seems to namecheck a number of hits from the 80's

"The thought of giving my heart away

I’d be living a lie

The black and white

It all fades to grey

In time after time"

The sound moves from pure pop to classic country as the mood slows for "Empty Heart", one of the singles already released from the EP, that now provides breathing space between the two rocking tunes on either side. With the next stage being "Pain & Guilt", this finds Neeve in a contemplative mood.

From the pedal steel opening, through the brush percussion and relaxed guitar refrains, to her opening plaintive vocals there is clearly something special happening.

The opening verse tells of someone in turmoil, potentially disheartened by previous encounters, which seems to only increase the chances of future disappointment.

"My head and my heart are fighting again

Before it all starts I know how it ends

I'm traveling on a road til morning

Playing old love songs but playing pretend"

The pre chorus only further enforces the internal wrangling going on. Neeve somehow lets her vocals linger over each word, only emphasising more that she does not want to be heading in this direction.

"Seems like home’s so far away, I’m not going

It seems like all the signs are pointing somewhere I don’t wanna go"

Neeve uses the chorus to great effect, blurring the lines between an automobile and her own life.

"All of the flashing lights

All of the warning signs

All of the roads that go nowhere

Chasing the broken lights

Chasing the endless nights

Chasing a love I thought was there

Fill up the tank it only goes so far

Can’t fill my empty heart"

The final two words of the chorus are worth the price of admission alone as Neeve, elongates and flutters her vocal over the word heart, to heartbreaking effect.

The second verse is magnificent for a couple of reasons, the first being the knowing realisation of history repeating itself, the second is how Neeve seamlessly joins into the pre chorus.

"Pour me a drink I know how this goes

You’ve got a few on me

Play me a song I don’t already know

That doesn’t make me feel ..."

The chorus second time round is lyrically totally different but still as powerful, if not more so for the powerful picture it paints

"All of the flashing lights

All of the warning signs

All of the bars across this town

Chasing another shot

Chasing the love I lost

Chasing a high that lets me down

Fill up that glass 

The same boy a different bar

To fill my empty heart"

Neeve once more neatly takes us to the bridge of the song, tying a number of themes together and the angst in the closing line is perfectly delivered to extract full emotion.

"They say love can lift you up

Or it can let you down

When you never thought it could

Maybe you’re the one

Maybe I got it wrong"

The final chorus brings a ray of hope,completing the journey, there is a lift in the style of delivery

"All of the flashing lights

All of the warning signs

All of the roads I’ve left behind

Chasing another path

Chasing a love that lasts

Chasing something beyond tonight

Fill up the tank and leave before it starts

Fill up the glass and leave you at the bar

To fill my empty heart"

Stage Three is "Anger & Frustration" and "Never Get Another" by the end of the opening verse is clearly showing signs of that, with a real snarl in the "Hate you" line

Opening to a insistent beat, with the sound of pedal steel and bass wrapped around it.

"It’s been two weeks, long drives

Since I’ve been over my head

Heartbreak songs had the radio on

I’ll never fall in love again

Cos I  could see where this is going

Staying out late with your friends

Now I hate you

I don’t wish you the best"

The opening verse perfectly captures the all encompassing drama that accompanies a break up, including a neat lyrical touch, cleverly doubling up in meaning, it could be describing how Neeve is feeling or be a tribute to the Burt Bacharach/Hal David classic being played on the radio.

The chorus sees Neeve forget the depression of the opening verse, regaining her confidence, her spirit, firing out her feelings with both barrels.

"No you’ll never get another like me

And money doesn’t grow on trees

You say, you say

You’ll never look back

But I  can guarantee that

You’ll walk right in and see me there

And want me under your sheets

It’s not my fault that you can’t find a lover

Never get another, like me"

The second verse plants the seed that any later replacement is only going to be a poor facsimile and comes with some delightful phrasing that rolls one line into the next. There's a real sense of distaste in the put down on the final line.

"Late night - drinking

You're still thinking of me even if

You settle down, you move out of town you'd see

That I was perfect, was it worth it?

The other girl ain't me

She wears the same boots

She's just another wannabe"

There's room for a short guitar solo before a more muted take of the chorus, with a return to the initial basic opening sound, bringing Neeve to the very front of the mix. This time, her vocals accordingly become just a little bit softer, before ramping up the volume once more on a chorus reprise, which neatly adds Neeve providing some subtle additional backing vocals

The closing section sees Neeve find varying ways of singing "Like me" - extending out the notes to great effect before sticking in the knife one last time

"Well it's not my fault that you can't find a lover

Never get another, like me"

with the final two words sung a capella.

With "Karma" we are once more undoubtedly back in Nashville territory, though in a more modern and indeed modest style of revenge song. Initially though the lead in verse is another chunk of classic country, pedal steel to the fore.

"I might be the bigger person

That don’t mean I’m gonna be

Someone who sits back and lets you walk over me

Cos what’s wrong is wrong and you’ll pay the price one day

But for right now karma take it away"

There's a degree of sassy independence on show, however Neeve's ideas of the world straightening things out are quite low voltage. There is no Dixie Chicks style murdering going on for sure!

The pace speeds up for the second verse

"I hope you lose your favourite shoes in that big old house one day

And the change drops out your pocket and rolls away

And the friends that you don’t have

Well God give em grace

And I sure hope he don’t make em like you these days"

With a chorus rich in fiddle playing and high on harmonies, this is probably the sweetest revenge song ever.

"Are you ooooo

Going out of your mind

Oooooooo

Is it treating you so unkind

You have to pick up the pieces for yourself this time

Cos karma's a friend of mine"

The final stage of a break is supposedly "Moving On" which nicely wraps up the cycle and makes for a nice diagram except that it is not quite as easy as that, and Neeve potentially saves the best until last with "Miss Me More", which addresses that issue. Musically it comes in layers, at first it seems as if it will be a gentle folk song centering on a gently picked acoustic guitar, letting Neeve's vocals steal the show. The musical simplicity is matched by a gritty reality attached to the sweetest of melodies

"Guess I’m the fool once again

Got lost in my head

Lost in my own damn mind

If I don’t say a word

Would it still hurt

Would it still break my

Heart worn on my sleeve

I’m so naive

Won't someone tell me who I should be

True to myself but I can’t tell who I am anymore

I miss you a hell of a lot but I miss me more"

The silky smooth transition from verse into chorus sees the sound start to build with percussion and pedal steel. The biggest thing about coming out of a relationship is re-establishing who you are.

The next verse articulates that in such realistic detail, there may be a degree of humble pie to consume especially if your friends could always see that things were never going to work out.

"Seems like I’m lonely again

I might call my friends

Ask them to come over

I’ll swallow my pride

Tell them they were right and it’s still breaking"

The sound becomes ever richer with the delightful addition of strings adding a real grandeur to the occasion.

The final lyrics really lay bare the mental confusion that can come with a break up as you work once again who you were before, are now and who you want to be going forward.

"With the wind stripped from my sails

And I’m floating again but I’m saving myself

And it’s hard to know who to be

When what’s you is me but it’s not anymore

And I miss you a hell of a lot but I miss me more

More, more more more but I miss me more

More, more, more, more"

It's a strong collection of songs that go to make a most cohesive and musically diverse set. With a short UK tour planned to promote the EP and no doubt a host of profile raising festival appearances to follow, this promises to be a most exciting year for Neeve Zahra.