Album Spotlight: Cassadee Pope, ‘Frame by Frame’
Cassadee Pope's debut album 'Frame by Frame' is a young woman's record. She refers to "boys" and "girls" and sings of things like her parents' divorce and falling in love in the front seat of an old car. The production straddles both pop and country, using phasers and Gwen Stefani-inspired stomps alongside fiddle and acoustic guitar. It's a mix that will be unique on country radio.
There's no denying Pope's pop-rock influences, and she doesn't really try. Some may find songs like 'Easier to Lie' too playful, but the weight of her story eventually comes through. 'I Wish I Could Break Your Heart' is another that might benefit from the cry of a steel guitar.
Divorce, young love, insecurities and heartbreak are a few of the subjects covered on an album that is lyrically diverse, if not emotionally diverse. 'Frame by Frame' is America's introduction to Pope as a songwriter, and she shows promise. "I hear this melody coming out all wrong / You hear a song," she sings on 'You Hear a Song,' a track that describes the fragility of youth.
Expectations are fairly rigid for any singer coming from a reality television show. With Pope, one will find on her solo debut the style and sound they embraced on NBC.
Tracks to Remember: 'Wasting All These Tears,' 'You Hear a Song,' 'Easier to Lie,' '11'
Getting Personal: '11' is one of five songs Pope helped write. It's about her parents' divorce, but she says 'This Car' is actually more personal. That track is likely about musician boyfriend Rian Dawson, her boyfriend of four years and the sixth person she thanks in the liner notes.
Did You Know? Pope's middle name is Blake! Surely that helped make her decision a little easier when all four coaches spun their big red chairs around for her on 'The Voice.'