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Wake Up Living
Canadian Idol winner Kalan Porter has matured significantly on his sophomore CD, Wake Up Living. The first single (and kickoff song) "Down in Heaven" is far more than a sonic sugar high; his increasingly rich voice and songwriting style is decidedly more evocative of Tal Bachman's melodic pop than tracks from his own previous release. There is much solemnity throughout the disc, with good reason; midway through the promotion of his successful debut 219 Days, the singer's mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Porter paused his career to join his family through the recovery process and--judging by the fact that more than half of the songs on Wake Up Living were co-written by Porter--processed much of that emotional battle via his music. The result is a CD that is frequently somber and lyrically contemplative: "Try"--a Beatle-esque melody with musings about life, death and love is perhaps the most mature track on the disc, while "One Last Try" and "Run Run Run" have a distinctly Sarah McLachlan feel. On a number of songs (including "Wrong" and "Karma King"), the singer/violinist is writing from a place of passion, but his lack of memorable melodies and vocal rawness leaves potentially powerful tracks somehow flattened. This more mature Porter might temporarily alienate him from his teen fan base, but his undeniable talent should carry him through to future, more even-keeled releases. --Denise Sheppard
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Tracks| 1 | Down in Heaven | | 2 | Destination (Where I Belong) | | 3 | Hurray | | 4 | Run Run Run | | 5 | Try | | 6 | One Last Try | | 7 | Beauty | | 8 | Karma King | | 9 | Wrong | | 10 | Walk on Home | | 11 | Out of My Head |
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