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Bonham's new LP abrasive

A screaming woman - again. Usually it is a wonderful and beautiful experience, but not in the middle of every song on an album. Tracy Bonham likes to do this - a lot. Perhaps that is why she ends up sounding like a horrific hybrid of Juliana Hatfield and Alanis Morrisette.

"The Burdens of Being Upright," Bonham's first full-length debut, is extremely annoying. Her voice ranges somewhere between little-girl and banshee, and lyrics like "cellophane is thicker than it seems," and "have you ever heard the sound of your head in the ground," firmly solidify her as stuck somewhere between the two mentalities.

Tracks like "Mother Mother," "Sharks Can't Sleep" and "Brain Crack" thrive on monotony. Sure, hooks are understandable, but chanting "That's the sound of your brain cracking" does not make you want to bop your head as much as rip the CD right out of the stereo and smash it with your bare hands.

Bonham's voice does stand out against the din of guitar and drums which manages to never create any distinct sound. Every track starts off with a whispery tone, and eventually climaxes to a point of yelling "Wow," or "Ah" for extended periods of time. Nothing like getting under your listeners' skin like a lecherous ringworm.

Can any excuse be made for "Bulldog," in which Bonham deftly explores the question of "Who's got the bulldog down below?" No. "Go to your mama little chihuahua?" Maybe her insightful lyrics just fly right over her listeners' heads, or maybe she creates layer upon layer of useless metaphor in hopes of saying one intelligent thing. It is pretty impressive that someone can make a 12-track album in which nothing at all is said. How refreshing, the confused plight of a woman who is willing to admit, "I'm hungry, I'm dirty, I'm losing my mind, everything's fine." Haven't we heard this one before?