Carly Rae Jepsen seems to following a pretty unconventional course for a pop star.
Now touring for her fourth album, “Dedicated,” the singer’s accomplishments – namely a role on Broadway in Oscar and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella,” and a role as Frenchy in the “Grease: LIVE!” television special – all have been overshadowed by her even more massive single that ruled the airwaves for all of 2012, the song “Call Me Maybe.”
And while her name might be forever associated with the ubiquitous song, Carly Rae Jepsen has retreated from her aural omnipresence and has gone the route of a much more indie act, all while putting out a very solid selection of catchy tunes.
It only takes spinning “Run Away With Me” or “Making the Most of the Night” from her heavily ’80s-influenced “E*MO*TION” record, or “Now That I Found You” and “Party For One” from her new “Dedicated” record to hear that the range in her indie stylings.
When it comes down to it, it’s easy to see how she can build a live set around the irresistibly catchy songwriting that helped catapult “Call Me Maybe” onto the radio and undoubtedly into your head a few years ago.
While many artists seem to have the hits, and then begin their decline, Jepsen’s ensuing work continues to build in complexity and overall production, with two more albums along with a B-Sides album that have flown firmly under big-radio’s formulaic sugar pop radar.
So while many stars start off with more originality only to get funneled into a sound and image interchangeable with other pop stars, Carly Rae Jepsen’s output seems to push her further into a sound that is uniquely and unquestionably her own, taking the scenic route as the current queen of indie pop.
Carly Rae Jepsen brings the dance party to the Grand Sierra Resort’s Grand Theater on Saturday, June 29.
— Shaun Astor
