Erin McCarley's debut album
Love, Save the Empty finds her singing in a throaty contralto that has a timbre similar to
Björk's, albeit without the Icelandic accent and with better breath control. Combined with the work of her musical partner -- Jamie Kenney, who arranged, produced, played, and helped write nine of the 11 songs -- the album was able to achieve placements for songs in the romantic comedy film He's Just Not That into You and on numerous television shows, including Grey's Anatomy, Ghost Whisperer, Privileged, and One Tree Hill. Such exposure is the early 21st century equivalent to getting extensive radio ads back in the 20th century, of course, and it is indicative of the intended audience for
Love, Save the Empty: teenage and young adult women likely to respond to the catchy music and to
McCarley's repetitious lyrics. Those words read like something scrawled in a dreamy high-school student's composition book, a combination of clichés, declarations of self-empowerment, and romantic turmoil. That makes them appropriate accompaniment to the story lines on those TV shows, of course, and it may help
McCarley sell some records, even if, oddly enough, she herself seems less impressive than other aspects of her album. ~ William Ruhlmann