Music
84 AMERICANWAY
NOVEMBER 15 2008
NO LESS THAN HALF A DECADE HAS PASSED
since the release of Dido’s last studio
album, 2003’s double-platinum
Life for Rent
, which sold more than two million
copies in theUnitedStates alone, according toNielsenSoundScan. “I guess it has
been a while if you start calculating the years,” the ethereal English songstress
admitswith a laugh. “And that’s something everyone butme seems to do.”
As excuses go, Dido’s is pretty solid: “Music is a limitless thing for me,” she
says. “It’s about learning as much as possible. When I have something to say,
themusicwill appear; when I don’t, it won’t.” (Now that we hear her reasoning,
we wish someone would arrange for the widespread adoption of this policy by
othermusicians.)
An unhurried muse isn’t Dido’s only explanation for why it took her so long
to complete
Safe Trip Home
(RCA, $19), out thismonth. She alsomentions that
therewere technical issues to sort out; chief among themwas figuring out how
to re-create the sound of a synthesizer with an orchestra. Though shemade her
name by singing delicate soul melodies over chilled-out post-techno grooves—
Eminem famously sampled her song “ThankYou” for his 2000 hit “Stan”—Dido
took a turn for the naturalistic on her third album. Instead of being accompanied
by drummachines and electronic instruments, her crystal-clear voice is, for the
most part, surrounded by live guitar, acoustic piano, and hand-played percussion
(much of that performedbyDido herself), aswell as lush old-Hollywood strings.
“You get a great warmth from having you and people you knowmake all the
sounds,” Dido says. “And there’s nothing better than hearing an orchestra play a
song youwrote.”
In addition to her older brother, RolloArmstrong, a veteran cowriter and co-
producer of all her CDs, Dido’s principal collaborator on
Safe TripHome
was Jon
Brion, the Los Angeles–based producer known in recent years for hisworkwith
FionaApple andKanyeWest. A fan of Brion’swhimsical scores for
Punch-Drunk
Love
and
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
, Dido played him some of her
ideas at Abbey Road Studios in London; later, she traveled to Los Angeles to
continue their partnership. “At some point, microphones were introduced, and
suddenly, weweremaking an album,” she says.
DidocreditsBrionwith inspiringher to sayanddomore. “Hegaveme real con-
fidence in theway I play,” she says. “Sometimes, on certain instruments, I’d get
frustrated andwish I could play like so-and-so. But then, Jonwould come along
andpoint outwhat’s great about it.”
Season seven of
American Idol
was definedby the battle of the
Davids: Cook, the real-life rocker, andArchuleta, the pint-size
popster. Cook ultimatelywon out, butwith each releasing a
debut album thismonth, the two singers are going head-to-head
once again.We compare the contenders. —M.W.
DUELINGDAVIDS
DAVIDARCHULETA
DAVIDCOOK
Hometown
Age
HipHairstyle
Vocal Style
First Single
CoreAudience
SimonSays
Chance for Success
Murray, Utah
17
Closely croppedbut super spiky
Buttery, post–Mariah
Carey croon
“Crush,” a bubblymidtempo
number about the persistence
of junior-high romance
Tween girls and theirmoms
The eternally cranky—but
usually right—Simon
Cowell toldLarryKing in an
interview that “the kids love”
Archuleta. He also (incorrectly)
predicted thatArchuleta
wouldwin season seven.
The bubblegum-pop-playing,
promise-ring-wearing Jonas
Brothers have proven that
squeaky clean can be cool. If
Archuleta (or his overbearing
dad) can resist boggingdown
his albumwith toomany
slo-mo ballads, the iTunes-
enabledDisney demographic
is his to dominate.
BlueSprings,Missouri
25
Emo comb-over
RaspyEddieVedder–influenced
bellow
“TheTime ofMy Life,” a sappy
Idol
-sanctionedballad about
dreams coming true and other
magicmoments
Tween girls and their dads
In an interviewwith
Entertain-
mentWeekly
, Cowell saidCook’s
rendition of “Billie Jean”was
“in a different league” than the
other performers’ songs. He told
King, “This is the guy Iwould
actually choose to listen to.”
His
Idol
rock predecessor,
ChrisDaughtry, racked up
multiplatinum saleswith an
album ofmiddle-of-the-road
rock. Cook is a little artier,
whichmeans he could rope
in an evenwider audience.
Reported collaborationswith
rock royalty such as Chris
Cornell also lend street cred.
