Part of what makes Rose Cousins’ music so touching is its deeply personal nature. While her slow and folky strumming might be a far cry from Adele’s upbeat pop ballads, the two songstresses’ music have one thing in common: raw emotion. Like Adele, Cousins grants her listeners an all-access pass to her heart.
Cousin’s soul-bearing songs have yet to make her millions, so when it came time to make We Have Made A Spark, the Canadian singer-songwriter reached out to friends and fans for financial support, offering advance copies of the album, exclusive video-updates, and other inventive prizes in exchange for donations. For example, any supporter who pledged $500 or more received a double batch of homemade cookies. Twelve batches of cookies and 451 “backers” later, she raised $25,000.
The album is, at its core, a stunning celebration of the support that binds folk music communities in Canada and the United States. For the uninitiated, Cousins sounds something like a sweeter, slowed-down Sarah Harmer. This album has her characteristically smooth and soothing voice complemented by layers of female vocal harmonies, drums, and strings. While the songs are sad, the underlying optimistic themes of letting go, moving on, and finding a bit of light in life’s dark moments still shine through. Her cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “If I Should Fall Behind” is reinvented successfully as a duet with Mark Erelli, and though the instrumentation on We Have Made A Spark is richer than previous albums, several songs stun with even the simplest piano accompaniment.
In this era of digital downloading, it’s nice to see online communities supporting artists instead of stealing from them. We Have Made A Spark is proof that by doing so, we all benefit as listeners.
—Madeleine Cummings
