Jadea It's Better To Be With You. Release Date : Presumably 2004. Label: Independent. Rating: Andy doesn't dig rating stuff. All right, I admit, I'm a bit stunned. This is far more accomplished than I might have thought. I missed Jadea's set in Toronto in 2004 at The Oasis, but from her and her buds and the cover of the album, I was thinking of a faux-rocky girly pop vibe. Instead, this is opening with a soft acoustic guitar and nicely-arranged strings. And a lovely warbly voice... it's almost following in the footsteps of Avril Lavigne. Considering her young age especially, this girl could do a lot. The recording quality suffers a bit at times, but that's a moot point for a young artist, and I imagine this is probably home recorded. These strings are beautiful. I have to say, I'm impressed. My foot is in my mouth, I admit I made a judgement too early, which I should know by now to never do. But so often when I tell myself that, remain open-minded, I end up listening to something horrible and I get back to my flippant ways. So I end up just being bewildered when something like this rolls along. "Everytime", the second track on the short disc, sounds too much like the first track, "It's Better To Be With You," but without the strings. These songs sound so sad, kind of with a gothic overtone. The tempo is so similar one song to the next - it needs a bit of diversity, something I suppose will come with time and experience. But the talent is certainly there. A sweet high voice, perfectly in tune. The electrobits over the vocals at times are a bit corny. "Be Myself" is quicker - she'd do better sticking with the ballads right now. The faster ones sound too poppy, but in a cheesy kind of way. And her voice still sounds a bit sorrowful, even though the music of the song sounds so peppy. The same song follows, but an acoustic version... but it's barely changed. Jadea, heed me! Give us more ballads! The lyrics are a bit basic right now, standard lovey-dovey words. The words of teenage love, a little bit underdeveloped and cliche. But all in all, this is pretty decent stuff, and certainly, Jadea is one to watch. Song of choice : "It's Better To Be With You" for the strings, strings, strings. -Andy Scheffler Published : January, 2005.