REVIEW: Cheyenne Marie Mize - We Don't Need

Cheyenne Marie Mize - We Don't Need
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Unassuming things are always those that strike the deepest chord within us. Catching us off guard, they are the things that we receive with no pretense, or preconceived notions; they are pure and free, taken in as they come. The unassumingly charming Cheyenne Marie Mize comes across as a relatively quiet person, one who you only get to know through her music. Honesty and profundity abound on her latest release, the six-song We Don’t Need.

Whether it’s the percussion-only sparsity of “Wishing Well” or the orchestrated, hypnotic web of instrumental closer “Back Around,” Mize finds a way to seamlessly weave blues, soul, folk, rock ‘n’ roll, pop, and a bit of experimental music together as she channels everyone from Radiohead to Neil Young. And it’s a real testament to her talent as a songwriter, and musician, that she is able to embody these styles wholeheartedly, never coming across as alien in any one sound – proving she really is a musical chameleon.

“Wishing Well” could have been a rather mighty ode with just Mize’s cool yet spirited delivery, but with a layer of percussion rolling beneath her, it hits another level of infectiousness. “Call Me Beautiful” shifts gears rather dramatically, rising like fog from the dark corners of a forest; with bells ringing, somber strings seducing, and minor chords leading us along, she’s hit whatever lies beyond hauntingly beautiful (easily one of the most beautiful songs of the year, thus far). Instrumental “Back Around” sounds like something that would be a misfit, but Mize manages to make it fit quite well into the mix. As chopped loops of her hums skip and pan throughout, fingerpicked electric guitar dances with orchestral strings, making their way to a bit of foreboding guitar that sounds like the start of something inescapable.

We Don’t Need is a defiant statement that Ms. Mize can’t be pigeonholed to one style. It may not be an entirely cohesive collection because of its eclecticism, but, at six tracks in length, it doesn’t really need to be. It’s a record that posits her as one of the most overlooked and underrated songwriters active today. She’s the kind of writer that can create mountains out of molehills, making even the most low-key affairs sound urgent and full-bodied. With We Don't Need, it seems as though Cheyenne Marie Mize is on a path to be one of this generation’s strongest singer/songwriters.

MP3: Cheyenne Marie Mize - "Wishing Well"

We Don't Need is out now on Yep Roc. Pick it up here.