Today’s review will center on a passionate and regal artist who does exactly like what is described in the paragraph before. Queen Majeeda is a poet, and a musician-by-proxy, who performs her poetry to instrumentals. She hails from the lush island of Jamaica, moved to New York, and now resides in Florida. I’m sure Florida’s warm weather helps her thrive, as it is quite similar to the wondrous climate of Jamaica. Her artistry started off with her recording her poems to reggae music, resulting in a tour of the United States. During her tour, she would recite her poems at college campuses, schools, libraries as well as cafes. She would also perform in various venues in her native island, never forgetting her roots.

Her previous works include ‘Conscious’, which was released and distributed by both Tuff Gong locally in the Caribbean, and Heartbeat Records worldwide. She then went on to self-distribute her EP ‘Our Glorious Past’, and has since released two singles, ‘Despised and Rejected’, and ‘Conversation at the Well’, the latter of which is technically the debut single for this particular album release. 

In terms of writing, she has also been included in anthologies by Eden Works Publishing as well as Sister Vision Press, as well as a publication affiliated with the City University of New York.

Queen Majeeda definitely has an extensive repertoire to her name, and this sets a great start for anticipating her current release. Her newest release, Wedding Invitation, is an album born from the result of a global quarantine. This album was inspired by the themes of women, relationships, strength and resolve, the allegory of the bride, and also an ode to Bridegroom. Having penned wonderful poetry in regards to these themes, all of which center around the Bible verses between Matthew 24 and Matthew 25, she decided to record them in her closet and polish it into a full-blown album. 

As much as I’d love to analyse each poem verse by verse, for the sake of this review, we will center our analysis on the intersection of how the poetry sounds, blends, and intertwines with its corresponding instrumental. For those who may not be aware, poetry analysis is a task in itself, almost lending similarity to a whole published literary analysis. As a result, it would not be fair for me to overlook Queen Majeeda as a poet. However, let’s explore and see if she stands the test of being a wonderful orator and musician, with the musical quality of this album.

First of all, the album starts off with a pseudo-tribal backing track to the concept of Adam and Eve, explained in poetry. Straight off the bat, I think she has a wonderful timbre to her voice. The instrumental and the sound effects used in this track oscillate between dramaticism and slight overuse of MIDI-based sounds, instead of an organic sounding VST. However, the strings in this track sound ethereal.

I think it’s quite worth it to note the fact that the sound effects used fit the changing narrative of the poem. If there is a more ‘calm’, and light-hearted theme with the lines in the poem, the music choices will reflect that. If it gets more tumultuous, the music will also accompany that. There is a great amount of proficiency with the way these varying sounds merge into each other, they do not sound choppy in procession. My only problem with the start of the track is the lack of mastering of her voice because I can still somewhat tell the acoustics of where she recorded it wasn’t necessarily great. With some polishing, this track would eliminate all doubt and put you in a trance, making you feel like as if you’re in the story itself.

I think the starting instrumental of the next track, Rahab, has a bit of a tribal hip-hop fusion to it, making it sound as if it has a standalone musical quality of its own. I think if this musical motif is expanded upon, it could turn into a full song. There are very apt foley as well as sound effects in this track, as well.

I do notice a pattern with this album. It’s easy to fall into the trap of purely listening to the music and not really noticing the spoken word pieces in the first place. However, I don’t think this is necessarily a bad quality, per se. I think this leaves more space for artistic variation and interpretation, as many avant-garde artists merge the concept of ‘multi-interpretation’ in their works. This pays for itself, as it makes the audience feel as if they could return to the album and never truly get bored. There will always be a new breath of air every single time someone relistens to the album. 

The tracks ‘Talk of the Town’ and ‘Conversation at the Well’ follow the same pattern consistent throughout the album, thus far. It is a combination of sultry music, mixed with tribal influences, and some regal sprinkling of music when the situation lends itself to it. As the album progresses, there is more percussive build-up, making it more exciting. Queen Majeeda’s vocal delivery also improves, even though the quality of the audio file with her voice does not change. I can tell that she truly knows how to tell a story. She stresses words when it is necessary, and gives particular intonation to specific lines, showing versatility in her role as a storyteller. 

‘The Wait’, ‘Wedding Invitation’ as well as ‘Ten Virgins’ shine in building on the ethereal motif waiting to emerge in this album and poetry series, giving a poignant yet vulnerable feel with the orchestral backing. It is very heavy in strings, spaced-out percussion, as well as choral vocals. The addition of a harp-like sound also gives the audiobook album more imagery that reminds me of early Christian paintings. I think these tracks might be the best of the album thus far, due to the complexity of the composition, and the choice of instruments used. 

I do find the track ‘Unfaithful Woman’ quite significant in terms of a VFX/cinematic perspective. The sounds used in this particular track bear more similarity to sounds used for a cinematic feel instead of an actual song. Even though it deviates from the traditional structure of a song, I think the quality of sounds used is extremely high. There is no room for misinterpretation, unlike earlier tracks, where it was quite clear that a MIDI file was used. The ninth track follows the flow of the previous track, with added synth backing as well as strategic echoing to Queen Majeeda’s verses. I find her delivery on this track quite tantalising. She does her best narration in this track, for sure. The tension in the story builds up with a lot of stylistic darkness and suspense. I mean, it is about the concept of a blasphemous and unsavoury woman after all.

The final arc of the album, expressed through the tracks ‘The Bride’, ‘The Bridegroom’ and ‘New Jerusalem’, explores the wonderful beauty of the final arc of marriage and finally essentializes the concept of marriage without anything standing in its way and being an obstacle. As a result, the narration within these tracks is more subtle as well as definitive, solidifying the concept of marriage. Earlier motifs involving an ethereal theme get expanded upon for the instrumentation of this album, making it stronger and setting the scene for the final note of marriage.

Essentially, I think this album is quite interesting. Even though I wouldn’t call it an album, because it does lack a certain form of musicality that an album typically has, even for lyrics akin to poetry, I think Queen Majeeda has a skill that should be expanded upon when it comes to composition, mastering as well as ‘music narration’ for stories and movies. Typically when I encounter a more musical album, I can fall into a world of abstraction. However, with this album, I think what it evokes is also something that needs to be explored besides the world of musical abstraction- the ability for sonic mediums of art to evoke a full-on scene in your brain.

The clever use of VFX sounds and techniques only seen primarily in movies made it seem as if I was watching a movie with the screen turned off. Queen Majeeda’s prowess in being versatile with her intonation and stress towards certain words also helped bring the story truly to life. Quite ironic, since the story technically evokes a feeling less of materialism, and more of the ethereal.

Even though this album has certain pitfalls, such as vocal mastering not necessarily being up to standard in some instances, and poor choices of VSTs as well as audio files, the compositional intent makes up for it. I suggest that perhaps if Queen Majeeda intends to also appeal to a broader, musical audience, all that needs to be changed is one simple trick- merely adding more space between the verses and letting it ‘play out’ throughout the track. The rapid-fire delivery makes it seem like it is a play or a movie, which I definitely can appreciate, as a cross-medium artist, but I’m not sure if everyone can.

As I’ve said earlier though, I do also appreciate the totem and the story behind this album itself. Marriage is a wonderful thing if you’re in matrimony with the right person. Even if you’re not, this album does touch on the concept of it going awry. I have never seen an album exploring such a topic in such a way, and I have to commend the artist for proposing such a thing. (All puns intended). Wedding Invitation expresses all that you can feel- bliss, anguish, terror, suspense, and everything in between. With further refining, her style of poetry mixed with her style of instrumentation can definitely go further in the annals of art. 

Rating/Good – ‘Wedding Invitation’ is an intriguing album that crosses the boundaries of the literary arts and music. Exploring the sanctity of marriage with religious and ethereal motifs, it made me rethink the way I interpret both fields of art, all while captivatingly providing a cinematic and engaging soundscape. With further refining, this style of art can go far. 

[We rank singles, EPs, and albums on a scale of Poor, Mediocre, Good, Excellent, and Outstanding]

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God’s Sweet Light is a short but shining single that seeks to spread the word of God to lovers of rock and gospel music. With a fun, free-flowing structure, this is an accessible and upbeat song that newcomers to the gospel-rock genre can sink their teeth in.

The lyrics are simplistic yet powerful and impactful, reminding listeners of the depth of God’s love and the way that it seeks us out, no matter where we are or what we’ve done.

As a Christian rock song, God’s Sweet Light does an excellent job of blending the driving energy of rock music with the uplifting message of faith. It’s a song that’s easy to sing along with and inspires listeners to reflect on the love of God in their own lives.

Overall, I would highly recommend God’s Sweet Light to fans of Christian rock music or anyone looking for an uplifting and powerful message about the love of God. It’s a well-crafted song with a great sound and lyrics that will stick with you long after you’ve finished listening.

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Score/Good: A fun song with a positive message and an aesthetic that holds to its genre, a comforting listen.

Written by Jake Campbell.

jakejcampbell123@gmail.com

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