Review: Once Upon Another Time (EP) by Sara Bareilles

Tracklist:
1. Once Upon Another Time
2. Stay
3. Lie to Me
4. Sweet as Whole
5. Bright Lights and Cityscapes

Can I start by saying that I absolutely love the cover art? SO PRETTY. It's simple, but it's sophisticated (much like Sara's music!).


You know, I was enjoying this EP so much, and then it was already over. Seriously though, Sara's music is fabulous as always. There's a depth to her lyrics that most popular artists don't have anymore. There's meaning to the things she writes. She has a way with words and lyrics, and as I've said before, I'm SO JEALOUS.

And this was no different. UNTIL I got to Sweet as Whole. I saw it was explicit, so I knew it would be a step away from Sara's regular stuff, but it completely shocked me. The vocals weren't fab, the lyrics were less than desirable, and while I can see that she probably had fun with it, it broke the flow entirely. Maybe if it were the last song, I would have felt better about it. But it was smack dab in the almost middle! And while it made me enjoy Bright Lights and Cityscapes a bit more, I found it harder to concentrate. It was just so different from what I'm used to from Sara. Now, I don't object to artists straying away and trying new things, but Sara has always come off as a sophisticated artist and songwriter to me, and this just took away from that a bit.

Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the rest of the songs. In the future, I just won't listen to Sweet as Whole.

(Seriously though, there's hardly anything else I can say about her other than to gush over and over again at her artistry and everything.)

Rating: 4/5

What are your thoughts on the album/EP? I'm especially curious about your thoughts on Sweet as Whole.