Emily Bindiger was 16 years old when she wrote and recorded this exceedingly brief and exceedingly interesting folk-pop oddity,
Emily. Folk-pop suggests something gentle, while
Emily is actually a bit bombastic, filled with triumphant brass, tinkling pianos, and thick layers of strings -- so many accouterments that
Bindiger's reverbed voice fights against their onslaught. But that's part of the appeal of the record, particularly over its first eight songs, all concise, colorful short stories, testimonials, and character sketches. This delicate balance gets knocked out of whack at the end, when the 9:39 "Old Lace (To John)" tests the patience with its endless spiral of
Ian Anderson solos, all accompanied by guttural grunts, but prior to that conclusion -- which is the only moment where the prog overwhelms the folk -- this is a rather bewitching record, and one that isn't strictly the sound of a flower child, either. Bright, bubbly cuts like "Song for Steve" and the two-step "Sunflower Seeds" give this color, keeping it from sounding precious. And perhaps that's why
Emily is beloved by a small cult: just when it seems to promise one thing it delivers something else, a neat trick for anybody to pull off, but something especially impressive from a teenager. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine