Green TaRA

Green TaRA, the funk/soul/R&B/social activist alter ego for Tara Nicole Donald, explodes fully formed on Global Baby, the second album for the Vancouver-based artist. It’s a jam-packed record filled with influences, thoughts, sounds and sensations — it’s a good thing, though overwhelming. Tara’s songwriting is packed with expression but doesn’t always find the balance between a running inner monologue crafted into rough verse and wordplay that enhances and complements the music. There are a handful of songs that find that sweet spot of balance however. "Controller” starts with a sampled elementary school-esque lecture on Harriet Tubman, the conductor on the Underground Railroad. What develops is one of the more thoughtfully constructed tunes on the album; it’s simple but with the full punch of Tara’s forceful vocals and easy reggae-influenced sway. Both peace and groove can be found in the more chill tunes — those that move on the waves of Tara’s pushy alto voice, the call of horns and weaving of bass and backup vocals. These are the ones that allow the controlled chaos of a swirling tide pool of influences to breathe and move together instead of getting sucked away in a great rush of sound.