Let me preface this with a little information about Kelly Sweet. I discovered her a few years back when she was singing some sweet soft vocal/pop songs and I was entranced by her voice, but times change and a artist has to change and grow as well. I remember a couple of years ago when Kelly first teased her new songs (I remember a in-studio clip where I heard "Sirens" and I was hooked) but time kept passing and still no release date...I could tell that Kelly was as frustrated as her fans about her record label (Razor & Tie) not releasing the album.
Now I'm not claiming to know the details about what occurred between Kelly and R&T but I do know that she left her label, and her album, "Ashes Of My Paradise" is about to be released in Japan on Victor Entertainment's label, unfortunately there is no current word about a North American release, but I dearly hope it happens. This album is special, It's hard for me to put into words the heart, soul and emotion that has been put into this album. Razor & Tie has made a serious error, "Ashes Of My Paradise" is a perfect album for the current market, it's got impeccable songwriting, great beats and heartfelt (and heartbreaking) vocals.
It's a little bit LIGHTS, a little bit Ellie Goulding, but mostly Kelly Sweet, and that's what makes it perfect.
My picks for standout tracks are the first single "My Amazing Grace" which is just simply one of the most gorgeous love songs I've ever heard, "Walking On Mars" is a perfect track for those of us who march to a different drummer and look to the stars, the aforementioned "Sirens" and "You And I", which if it doesn't tug at your heart when you hear it, you don't have one.
Right now the only way for us in North America to get the album (Japan release date, Aug 22) is by importing it (I'll post a link at the bottom) or purchasing a iTunes Japan gift card (for example, from this website.) Now I hope that success in Japan will mean a NA release, but it's certainly up in the air right now.
If you'd like to listen to some samples of the album you can do so on her Japanese label website or on iTunes Japan . You can import "Ashes Of My Paradise" here and please be sure to follow Kelly on Twitter and Facebook and listen to "My Amazing Grace" on her BandPage!
