I like the idea of dichotomy. I even like the word dichotomy and use it wherever possible. The opportunity presented itself again with Tati Kalveks’ album “Graceless”. You see, I’d been researching a holiday in south west Italy and, through the almighty power of Google, had, through curiosity, been reminded of the wonders of Sabrina Salerno (still going strong 20 odd years after “Boys”, it would seem).
Getting back to the point, Tati Kalveks is a young singer songwriter of principle. None of those cute and fluffy love songs for this young lady as she instead takes a more confrontational, and often humorous, lyrical route. Despite the underlying seriousness, there’s still time to hide her admirable sentiments in a proto showtune (“My Ideal Man”) that seemed particularly suitable though the positively venomous “Barbie” – “… hasn’t got a minge” – takes her closer to Amanda Palmer territory. So, whilst she rarely misses those, admittedly easy, targets there are, underneath the attitude, the makings of a real songwriter. “Let Me Be”, for instance, is a monster waiting to awake.
On the downside, the arrangements on the album are often crude and awkward and detract from what should have been a feast of intelligent quirkiness.
Tati Kalveks is the kind of artiste that is practically guaranteed to be a hit at the Edinburgh Festival with the politically correct beard strokers having to approve of her on a point of their borrowed principles and that, in all likelihood, would put her one step closer to being the new Victoria Wood.