Do you miss the days of lo-fi high energy female rockers? If so, Ida Maria is here to quench your alt rock nineties thirst with Fortress ‘round My Heart. The album itself makes me long for the days when PJ Harvey, 4 Non Blondes, and Liz Phair almost ruled the world. Ida Maria is talented, high energy, and irreverent, just like all good alt rock kids!
Fortress ‘round My Heart is pretty hit and miss for a major label album in my opinion. It’s not bad by any means but the approach wears thin fairly quick. The album starts off great with “Oh My God,” “Morning Light,” and the album’s highlight, “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked.” This trio of songs definitely define Maria’s sound and the album goes downhill shortly thereafter. “I Like You…” is a fun rocker that will make you want to sing, dance, jump around, and drive really fast. It definitely reminds you that there is a huge void in music right now.
The clunky “Stella” is the beginning of the slide. It’s similar to the “my guitar is going out of tune” sound of the early Joan Jett ballads. “Louie” is the only downright awful moment but it’s really the fault of the sound as the song itself doesn’t seem to be all that bad. “Queen of the World” saves the second half of the album by bringing the listener back to that magical place that the inaugural trio of songs takes them, so all is not lost!
Overall this is an okay album. It will by no means bowl you over and you’ll likely skip a few songs after the first listen but there are enough fun and energetic moments to warrant at least checking this out if you are looking for a summer album to crank up while your on a road trip.
Reviewed by Mark Fisher
