Album Review

Ward Thomas – From Where We Stand

• 21st Jul 2014

Ward Thomas are 20-year old twin sisters Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas, born in London and raised in Hampshire. The pair come from a creative family: they have always been musical and found their way to country music via a Canadian cousin. And their debut album From Where We Stand is a quite beautiful English take on the classic country pop sound, made in Hampshire and recorded in Nashville.

The twelve tracks on this fine debut album show the pair as rapidly maturing songwriters. But what stands out most is the sheer splendour of their voices. The exquisite tones and gorgeous melodies take the breath away. This is country pop done quite beautifully, with lovely phrasing, strong emotions and tight harmonies.

But there is some variety here too. The slow piano ballad From Where I Stand is quite stunning. The subject is their parents’ divorce when the twins were just twelve, and the deep sadness comes through strongly, yet there is a resilience shown too. Wasted Words is another stand out track. The combination of lovely harmony vocals along with whispers of mandolin, steel guitar and fiddle make this a sumptuous song.

Footnotes, the track that first brought the pair to the attention of Nashville producers, is a quite beautiful acoustic track. There is also a fine cover version of Caledonia by veteran Scottish folk singer Dougie MacLean. The Ward Thomas version is slow and captivating, those gorgeous voices giving real heart to a song of longing for home. The album’s closer heads towards country rock territory, the piano led Town Called Ugely having a honky tonk feel with a faster pace, as the pair demonstrate that there is vocal power here too when it is required.

There are several of the more typically country pop songs on the album too. And these are the ones that will undoubtedly get the radio play. The single Push the Stride, an upbeat and positive song about going full out for your dreams, hurtles along at pace very nicely. It’s the type of song to be listened to with the top down on a summer’s afternoon. The Good And The Right is appealing and melodic, as is Guest List, which has perhaps the catchiest pop chorus of them all.

Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas have considerable talent both as songwriters and as vocalists. Their performances throughout this excellent debut album mark the out as a pairing with a very bright future indeed. Their take on the classic country sound is fresh and appealing and with enough difference to show them more than capable of building on the style rather than simply imitating it.

Venue: From Where We Stand
Support Band: WTW Music Ltd