CALLISTA CLARK

                                                            "Gave It Back Broken" 

                                                            Big Machine Label Group

There was a whole lot of buzz surrounding Callista Clark just a year ago, and then she absolutely burst with purpose onto the scene with “It’s Cause I Am” and met that buzz head on while solidifying her name by quickly stamping her foot down on country music and beginning to make her way up the charts right out of the gate.

Her buzzworthy Real To Me EP earned her many more accolades from the media and fans alike, but she now returns with “Gave It Back Broken” and unravels a completely new layer as she opens her next chapter.

The song, written by Clark and Emily Shackleton, leans on a slower paced melody that relies on the softness of the piano laced instrumentation to perfectly allow Clark to showcase the natural soul that her voice carries as she skillfully uses it in all the right ways to pack the emotion of the broken-hearted lyric in each word she sings.

Reminiscing of what they had and how it made her feel, Clark sings us through a looking back perspective on the opening verse, hitting on the facts that she thought she was safe in his arms, trusted that he’d catch her if she fell fast, etc. All designed to lead to the gut punch of him breaking up with her and giving her back her now shattered heart.

The second verse, turns the corner a bit differently and is completely reflective as she delves deeper into the stages of grief that come in the aftermath of the breakup, even pointing blame at herself for expecting honesty from him.

But it’s through the chorus that Clark showcases an incredible range in her voice as she hits a falsetto type of high note, singing us through her own wonderings by asking a series of questions out loud to him; almost as if she’s speaking it all into existence while searching for unknown answers:

“So don't you feel bad, bad, bad

Bein' like that, that, that?

Don't you feel guilty, don't you feel sad

Losin' the best thing you'll ever have?

I gave you my heart with no missin' pieces

'Cause you promised me you would hold it

So don't you feel bad, oh

That you gave it back broken? Oh no, oh”

Callista Clark has already proven herself as an artist to be taken very seriously with her turn at pop country, but this intriguing new layer with its throwback jazz and soul feel brings a very interesting dynamic to her arsenal while continuing to show who she is as an artist and that she isn’t afraid to swerve outside of the box.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

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