The Harlequin, or as some of us may have guessed – Gabrielle, has just finished a rather impressive range of performances on The Masked Singer and is ready to stay on our screens, speakers and stages a little while longer.
After her successful venture into the semi-finals, Gabrielle, with the aid of Ian Barter (Amy Winehouse, Paloma Faith) is releasing a whole new album showcasing her iconic renditions from the show.
Gabrielle thrives with her natural talent, exercising her own unique stamp onto tracks that you wouldn’t necessarily have paired with the singer, performing songs from the likes of Billie Eilish, Harry styles and even Tina Turner.
Iconic singles meet an even more icon persona. Although you may have heard some of the covers on the show, the ‘Do It Again’ album provides a much more intimate set including two new original tracks co-written by the singer.
The new ‘Stop Right Now’ and ‘Can’t Hurry Love’ singles serve romance and realism in a classic 90’s style with a confidence and prowess to match the singers.
For many of us it is a resurgence of the well-known 90’s ‘Dreams’ singer; a blast from the not so distant past, but for newer audiences, this could be their first introduction to one of Britain’s most memorable personas.
It is an unusual thought that younger audiences might not recognise those vocals and of course the side fringe but will this album be the show stopping resurrection that puts her on their radar?
Not really to put it bluntly. Although we are introduced to new original tracks as a whole it isn’t the monolithic album we may have wanted.
That being said, it is a designated sing-along pick me up and one thing you can’t deny is the soulful web that Gabrielle expertly weaves. With her refined taste and knowledge of what works, she has made these tracks her own, refurbishing them to the point where they could have been made just for her.
It is easy to fall into her web of soul fluttering bluesy beats and kick back with the tempo. Compelled by her iconic vocals, the album clearly has Gabrielle’s imprint, fusing different genres, styles and hits to complement and fuel her own.
Gabrielle commented, “I have loved putting my own stamp on the songs I sang on The Masked Singer along with some of my favourite covers and two new songs I wrote. The new single ‘Stop Right Now’ was written with Ben Cullum. It’s a song I’ve wanted to release for a while, and I would dance to it in my kitchen.
“I always felt it needed to see the light of day! I am so happy that day has come. I’m really excited for people to hear this album and I hope they enjoy my take on the covers and the new songs too.”
‘Do It Again’ isn’t a prodigy, audacious or even necessarily a hit, but it does exactly what Gabrielle wanted. It feeds a little ray of sunshine through the speakers, rolling in on a slick bass and vocal reverb for us to bask in and sing along to.
Following the release of the album on 5th March 2021, Gabrielle is also set to perform with her ‘Rise Again Tour 2021’ from November. Tickets are available here and the ‘Do It Again’ album can be ordered/ pre-saved from this link. https://gabrielle.lnk.to/DoItAgainPR