"Ellipse," Imogen Heap's third solo album, is arguably her most mature. While it draws heavily on her previous work, it highlights both Heap's growth as a recording artist and her refusal to color inside the lines of pop.
Heap's solo albums are marked by a reliance on computer-generated instrumentals, duets that are more like counter-melodies, and imaginative but convoluted lyrics that, if you can decipher the vague metaphors, dispense commentary on society and relationships.
"First Train Home," the bouncy and addictive opening track and the album's first single, features a synthesizer throwback to the 1980s, a playful interweaving of vocal lines and the usual hard-to-follow lyrics ("I want to Play-Do waveforms in the hideaway"). The catchy chorus makes this single considerably more palatable for the casual radio listener than most of the other tracks on her albums.
"Canvas," tucked away in the back half of "Ellipse," is nevertheless the most forward-looking track of the bunch, and showcases Heap's maturity as an artist. Composed in a driving waltz (9/8, for those of you keeping track), it stands out considerably from previous album "Speak For Yourself," which was written entirely in the standard pop two-time. Live instruments, such as guitar and violins, appear much more often on "Ellipse" than on Heap's previous albums, and they dominate the intro of "Canvas." Heap has also set aside generous portions of the song for the intro and outro, flexing her musical limbs instead of filling the space with more of her confounding lyrics. "Canvas" is preceded by, "The Fire," the album's instrumental track, another musical luxury Heap has not allowed herself until now.
Heap gives herself more musical freedom on "Ellipse" than she did on "Speak For Yourself," which attempted to squeeze too much material into too small a space. "Ellipse," with its simpler but no less engaging arrangements, is a step in a refreshing new direction where each part to each song can be heard and enjoyed without being covered up by seven others. "Earth," a track composed entirely of Heap's own affected voice singing intertwining parts, is a prime example of such welcome simplicity.
Heap has expressed herself artistically in many forms over the past decade. From solo artist to collaborator in the duo Frou Frou, she has steadily produced albums every four years since the 1998 release of her first solo album, "i Megaphone." Heap, however, is best known for songs that have appeared on television and movie soundtracks, most notably the over-played, over-loved and often-mocked "Hide and Seek," which aired on the season two finale of "The O.C."
Vocally, Heap is becoming more confident, taking more risks and stepping outside of the mechanical box she was stuck in for the entirety of "Speak For Yourself." She retains much of her old style, jumping around within keys, switching between her low and high voices with eerie effortlessness, but lets her hair down on "Bad Body Double," playing around with recording techniques and experimenting with some well-placed spoken word.
"Ellipse" is the product of Heap's 10-year on-again off-again career, one that has led her out of the obscurity of "i Megaphone" and into iTunes fame, as the album idles humbly at the top of the sales charts. It's uncertain where the future will take Imogen Heap, but for now she's off in her digital imagination with "Ellipse" trailing behind her.
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