Anna Schulze – Pickford Market

Anna Schulze is a young and accomplished solo musician originally from Minnesota, but moved to Los Angeles to study at the University of Southern California. Schulze worked with producer Brian Robert Jones to create this most recent album, titled “Pickford Market”, and has opened for prestigious acts such as the Beach Boys. Schulze is a guitarist and a vocalist, and works both solo and with a band. “Pickford Market” was released February 19^th.

This album is simply well-made all around. The production is quality, the arrangements are quality, and the overall presentation of the material is both incredibly entertaining and intimate at the same time. At twenty-four years old, the level of honesty and polished musicianship Schulze has achieved is truly profound. These nine tracks are exceedingly well-written. The instrumentation is dynamic and appropriate enough, but what really sells these songs is the fact that they simply have great lyrical content and are founded on effective musical concepts. Take the opening track, “Closer”, for example; the overall assertiveness of the composition definitely comes through the near perfectly mixed guitar sound, but it’s the stylized vocals and delivery of Schulze that really make the song work perfectly. There are a lot of mediocre albums from young bands that put out decent instrumentation but typically have little to no charismatic element. The music is there, but the vocal delivery and lyrics aren’t. This is the difference with Schulze; charismatic and truly proficient songwriters don’t come along very often, but this particular album exemplifies the unity of driving instrumentation that is evenly matched by a praiseworthy lead individual that is capable of giving this band a distinct edge. The album is multifacted as well; songs vary from alternative rock oriented to more pensive and contemplative. Through the variation and different approaches to lyrical narrative, listeners are able to acquire a multi-dimensional aspect of Schulze’s talent as a songwriter. The music, if it could ever be classified or compared, is a cross between Paramore and No Doubt, probably leaning more toward the alternative-based styling of Paramore. Schulze’s voice is similar to that of Hayley Williams, and both artists have song writing tendencies that seem to be somewhat applicable to one another.

Young alternative-rock bands aren’t exactly a rare commodity in Los Angeles, and from a basic numerical standpoint, Schulze has a lot to contend with. “Pickford Market” sounds great, it’s insightful, it’s fast-paced, and it focuses on Schulze’s profound talents. However, some listeners may find that it doesn’t deviate from the norm enough to standout. There isn’t anything particularly wild or innovative about “Pickford Market” despite the fact that it turns out a series of pretty decent tracks. In order to stand out from the masses of other pop/rock alternative bands that also have a polished and well-written album, Schulze will have to reach out and experiment with her sound further.

At the end of the day, “Pickford Market” is a fantastic achievement. The album is everything that good music should be; the songs are genuine, dynamic, insightful, and showcase an artist with an incredible amount of talent and potential. The sound is polished and clean, and stands as an excellent effort by a young musician that listeners can expect great things from.

7/10 Stars

Artist: Anna Schulze

Album: Pickford Market

Label: Independent

Website: http://annaschulzemusic.com/home

Genre: Pop/Rock

Sounds Like: Paramore, No Doubt

Technical Grade: 7/10

Production/Musicianship Grade: 9/10

Commercial Value: 7/10
Overall Talent Level: 9/10

Songwriting Skills: 9/10

Performance Skills: 9/10

Best Songs: Closer, Moving On

Strengths: Fantastic songwriting, well made album overall

Weaknesses: Sound is somewhat conventional

Owen Matheson