Set Me Free (Marion Raven album) explained
Set Me Free is Marion Raven's North American and European debut album released under indie label Eleven Seven Music. The album incorporates a mixture of fresh tracks and previously released tracks, with some revised versions, from her Asian and Scandinavian debut album, Here I Am. She also played the piano, acoustic and electric guitars on the record. Set Me Free headlines Raven's inclination to harder rocking songs and a darker lyrical scope. The album has been released in Germany and the U.K. with a digital release on the Dutch and US versions of iTunes. Interscope released the album in Canada, where Raven performed in ten Canadian cities as the opening act on Meat Loaf's March 2007 Arena tour.
Singles
- "Falling Away" was released as the album's lead single on 11 April 2007 in Europe and Canada and 12 June in the U.S.
- "Break You", originally from Marion's previous album, was released as a promotional single on 16 April 2007 in the United Kingdom.
Composition
- The songs "Break You", "Crawl", "Here I Am", "For You I'll Die" and the duet "At the End of the Day" were first released in Raven's 2005 international debut album, Here I Am, while the re-recorded version of "Heads Will Roll", "13 Days", and "All I Wanna Do Is You", and the acoustic version of "Let Me Introduce Myself", are tracks that preceded the album, appearing on the EP Heads Will Roll EP, that was released on 31 October 2006.[2]
- "13 Days" is the only collaborative track that has been released without any alterations in both debut albums, Here I Am and Set Me Free as well as the Heads Will Roll EP.
- "For You I'll Die" was inspired by the love Jim Morrison shared with his long-time companion Pamela Courson, coupled with their stormy relationship, separations and reunions. Raven wrote the ballad after reading the American singer's biography:[3] [4]
- Raven wrote the duet, "At The End Of The Day", which features a collaborative effort with Art Alexakis from Everclear, in memory of the first time she fell in love.[3]
- The acoustic version of "Let Me Introduce Myself" is a hidden track on the album that comes 40–50 seconds after "All I Wanna Do Is You". Raven has denied that "Let Me Introduce Myself" is directed at Zac Hanson's now wife Kate Hanson.[5]
Reception
- Set Me Free was made available while Raven was on tour with Meat Loaf, as an opening act, in the entire month of June 2007, with Raven being present to autograph the albums. The album was sold out when it was made available in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, while Raven was part of Meat Loaf's Canadian tour.
- Townsend Records praised the album for being "Heated, intense and heart-felt".[6]
- German website Soundbase-online gave the album 9 out of 12 stars, commending Raven's ability to emote her feelings through her songs.[7]
- Max.de praised Raven for using life as an inspiration for her music, and on being a genuine pop artist.[8]
- Mix1.de commended the mixture of heart-felt histronics of grief and of illusions on many of the album's tracks.[9]
- BBC reviewer, Harry Holgate, praised Raven's vocal ability as being on par with Kelly Clarkson and Avril Lavigne as well as commending Raven's invective nature as better than either of them. However, Set Me Free was criticised for its long production time and the lack of a consistent band, questioning Raven's decision to leave Atlantic Records.[10]
Track listing
- Notes
- The enhanced version of the album contains the music video for the single, "Falling Away".
- The album was made available on the US and European iTunes on 26 June 2007 but its online release was only officially announced, on Raven's MySpace, on 28 July 2007. The iTunes version of the album does not include the acoustic hidden track, "Let Me Introduce Myself".
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: Townsend Records. Townsend Records/ Universal . 2007 . Set Me Free Record labels . 2007-05-24.
- Web site: Marion Raven . Marion Raven . 2007 . Songs in Set Me Free originally from the Heads Will Roll EP . 2007-03-11.
- Web site: Marion Raven . Marion2u.com . 2007 . Marion Raven trivia . 2007-06-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070706174046/http://www.marion2u.com/triva.html . 2007-07-06.
- Web site: Artist Direct. artistdirect.com . 2007 . Biography . 2007-08-01.
- Web site: Kev The Viper 66 . marion-raven.com . 2007 . Set Me Free . 2007-06-05.
- Web site: Townsend Records. townsend-records.co . 2007 . Set Me Free Release info . 2007-06-23.
- Web site: Katze . soundbase-online.com . 2007 . Marion Raven: Set Me Free . 2007-06-25 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070823044953/http://www.soundbase-online.com/marion-raven-set-me-free . 2007-08-23 .
- Web site: Markus Weiß . Max.de . 2007 . Set Me Free: Marion Raven . 2007-06-28.
- Web site: Mix1.de . Mix1.de . 2007 . Set Me Free . 2007-07-22.
- Web site: Harry Holgate . BBC . 2007 . Marion Raven, Set Me Free . 2007-07-22.
8 June 2007
18 June 2007
25 June 2007
24 July 2007