Rebeka Reed

Rebeka Reed’s face might be familiar to some folks thanks to the time she spent hosting CBC’s Street Cents, or maybe it was from her CD from a couple of years ago. As far as I can see though, this is just a reissued version of her debut album from 2001, with a much more tasteful cover photo but no new songs at all. Not that it matters because just ten songs is more than enough. In the time since the album originally appeared, Reed has been nominated for a bunch of awards and also played more than her fair share of live shows. She has also been involved with Jewel’s Developing Artist Program, and there is more than a passing resemblance on some of the songs. But the biggest problem is that the production is very over-the-top, with Reed’s perfectly okay voice hidden beneath layer upon layer of studio sheen. Pharaoh’s Daughter is a spectacularly ordinary album that sounds like far too many other people to stand out from the crowd. Maybe after a couple of years, it is time for Rebeka to move on and record a few more songs instead of still relying on her older work.