Review - Erin McCarley - My Stadium Electric

We haven’t heard a whole lot from Erin McCarley since her debut back in 2009, an album which carried the title track “Love, Same The Empty”. I loved that song, and I really enjoyed the album. I was bummed to see that Erin didn’t take off as she should have. The single fared somewhat well on adult pop and contemporary stations and charts, but that was about it.

‘My Stadium Electric’, her second album, shows Erin reaching for a better faring in the world of singles. The album is chock full of songs that could find a home on the right radio stations, as I really, genuinely hope they will. Her sophomore effort is an almost completely upbeat one, keeping in tone with “Love, Save The Empty”. There are few sad, slow songs on here, which is a bit of surprise (many singer-songwriters can’t help but fill a record with introspection and ballads). The dearth of sadness on the album is a not only a sign that Erin wants to make us all happy, but it is a welcome reprieve from such songs.

You see, Erin is playing a tough game here. There are so many pretty girls out there with guitars that make great songs, so why should anyone care about her? At times, Erin is indistinguishable from her peers – people like Anna Nalick, Marie Digby, A Fine Frenzy, Missy Higgins, and Sara Bareilles on a good day. But while listening to ‘My Stadium Electric’, you wonder “do I care?”.

Erin might not stand out from the crowd at all times, but is that a bad thing if everyone in the crowd is making good music that we like?

Listen to: “Elevator”, “Pop Gun”, “There’s No Holding You Down” and “Amber Waves”

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