Leah Dou’s debut Stone Cafe shows confidence and maturity [Review]
It’s not hard to notice the influence of Dou Wei and Faye Wong on their daughter Leah Dou’s indie rock and psychedelia-inspired album Stone Café.
Dou has inherited her mother’s heavenly voice, best heard on May Rain and Lola. The former urges listeners not to feel desperate when a relationship ends, while the latter combines religious themes with sophisticated musical and vocal arrangement.
A combination of soulful vocals,, carefully orchestrated music and the running theme of a girl trying to escape from a world she does not belong to gives the album a sophistication that belies Dou’s age.
My Days expresses a desire to go back to the good old days; a lively tune clashing with downbeat lyrics. While River Run and Drive offer further proof of Dou’s beautiful singing abilities, greater vocal power would have made her rock turn on Waiting on Gregory more convincing.
It’s a relaxing record made for cafe culture, and has enough soulfulness to compensate for Wong’s hiatus.