All These Pretty Things by Tracey Yarad

Tracey Yarad's All These Pretty Things is a phoenix rising from the ashes story--a beautiful alchemy, taking the emotional fallout of a devastating divorce instigated by her then-husband's affair with their goddaughter, and transforming it into a deeply moving collection of breathtakingly honest and gorgeously sung songs on the themes of betrayal, loss and abandonment and the restorative power of music and love

Yarad has taken the paradigm of a new music release as being simply a collection of songs, and redefined it as an experiential and sensory journey of sight and sound. Ten fragments of memoir, reminiscent of New Zealand author Janet Frame's writings, precede and provide emotional context for the ten emotionally raw songs on the accompanying CD (which also has an audio version of each story). Ten celebrated Australian artists, whose only brief was to be inspired to create an illustration for the song and story they were given, produced the artwork. The result, a beautiful hardback presentation in full color, is a work of art to be treasured forever. 

“This album effectively carried me along for a peek into the emotional roller coaster ride described in these songs, from thoughtful resignation to heartbreak, rage, acceptance, and back again. It’s a great production in every aspect, supporting a soulful, steely-eyed storyteller and her defiant determination. I like it when I hear her roar!” —Madeleine Peyroux