Customer Reviews
Strong sound, weakish songs - By: A. Butterfield, 07 Aug 2008 
There's a lot to like about this album. kd's voice is beyond reproach, & she keeps things smooth & restrained throughout, which I like, never approaching the 'Constant Wailing' that marrs some of her work. This is just personal preference of course, but I definitely prefer the more laid-back kd.
Production is good too, & the backings are lush & interesting, somewhat reminiscent of 'Ingenue' at times, but this is no bad thing. It really is a very musical album. Almost easy listening, you could say.
If there's a problem for me, it's that none of the songs really stand out from each other. It's almost like it's the same song all the way through. Mostly it's quite a good song, thankfully, but everything does blur into a musical melange. Which of course may have been the intention.
Having said that, 'Sunday' does stand out as being a pretty weak song.
Take this for what it is, a homogenous hour or so of sound from kd lang that washes very nicely over you, & you won't be disappointed. If you're looking for a bunch of great songs too, you might well be disappointed.
A Watershed that leads nowhere - By: Herman Norford, 26 May 2008 
This is the first LP by K D Lang that I have bought. Indeed, I was not familiar with her until very recently as a result of the publicity surrounding the release of Watershed. The publicity & the reviews of Watershed placed Ms Lang among the great & serious female singers of popular music. So I chided myself for never having heard of her & off I went & ordered Watershed. My experience is that Watershed does no live up to the hype.
It is clear that Ms Lang has some musical ability. She co-writes all of the songs apart from one: "Oncein a While" which is solely written by her. She plays a range of instruments from guitar, keyboards, percussion, harp, to banjo. She has a fine ensemble of musicians backing her & she takes a leadin producing the LP.
Having acknowledged that ability what nonetheless is produced is an LP where the tone of the music remains mellow throughout all eleven songs. Ms Lang's voice remainedin the same melancholy register which meant that the LP lacked a varied emotional range & intensity.
Watershed is made up of a collection of songs with sparse lyrics. Which meant that Ms Lang has to over reprise verses & choruses. For example, the lyrics of the song "Oncein a While" were sangin about one minute & twenty seconds but the song is extended to three minutes & twenty two seconds. For me this meant that the songs lacked a sense of depth & therefore hardly engaged me. The only song that came alive for me was "Flame of the Uninspired" which has some good lyrics, & backing vocals that added some intensity lackingin the other songs.
Ms Lang has been categorised as a country singer. This may well be justified from her previous LPs. However,in terms of this LP it should be placed among the LPs on the easy listening shelf. Indeed, Ms Lang sounds very much like her compatriot, Anne Murray.
Watershed's theme, if there is one, is an intropective search for meaningin life. There is nothing wrong with such a grand theme but the problem is that the lyrics of these songs do not lend themselves to such weighty issues whichin turn makes the LP a little pretentious. I was greatly disappointed with this LP & despite what is said elsewhere it does not live up to the hype that stimulated my interest.
Classic KD Lang. - By: Dogtooth, 09 Apr 2008 
Just listened to Watershed for the first time today. This is a stunningly good album. Life is too short to be without it.
What a comeback.. - By: Boo Kirby, 15 Mar 2008 An album of superb quality - the vocals, songs, production & lyrics (I think Supertad may have been listening to a Kate Nash album by mistake?) are all without exception, top notch.
Up there with anything she's done before..and could quite possibly be her finest work to date. Wonderful
Great voice, shame about the rest - By: Supertad, 19 Feb 2008 
As a long-time kd fan, I was eagerly anticipating this album. What a letdown! These songs are hard to like. As ever, kd's voice is fabulous - she has a unique timbre that is a joy to listen to - but her lyrics, admittedly never her strong point, are puerile, jarring & frankly painful. The music is equally uneasy on the ear.
There can be little doubt that kd has one of the best voicesin the business, but she should stick to covering other peoples' songs, as she did so brilliantly on "A Wonderful World" & "Hymns of the 49th Parallel". A vocalist of note - yes. A lyricist & songwriter - no.
