''Complicated Mess'' is the second studio album of American singer-songwriter
Debra Arlyn
Debra Irene Arlyn (born February 27, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist from Oregon. Her musical style is a blend of pop, adult contemporary, jazz and R&B, arranged and performed on piano, with lyrics that deal with love and rel ...
. It was released independently by Homeslice Records in the United States on August 8, 2006.
Background
Debra Arlyn released her first independent album, ''Thinking Out Loud,'' in 2005 and took the album to Los Angeles in hopes of securing a
major label
"Big Three" music labels
A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...
record deal. Feedback from the managers and labels at the time was that her look and sound were good, but she'd have to focus on her songwriting.
After returning to
Oregon
Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
, she began writing and touring locally to begin work on her next album, ''Complicated Mess.'' ''Complicated Mess'' was written and produced with a sounding commercial to appeal to major record labels for another round of showcasing. Arlyn recorded the album at home in her studio with her touring band and produced the album herself.
When the album was completed, she began another round of label showcasing and played for many different major labels but did not secure a
record deal
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording act (artist or group), where the act makes an audio recording (or series of recordings) for the label to sell and ...
.
Returning to Oregon, she decided to continue with music and focused on being an independent artist and touring to support herself.
Arlyn did garner some success from the album when tracks such as "Why Can't We Start Over?" were featured on the television show
Related.
Songs and themes
The songs on the album largely revolve around love,
relationships, and
romantic themes. Most songs were written based on Arlyn's experiences with current and former boyfriends.
Songs are based around piano composition, which is Arlyn's primary instrument.
Track listing
All songs written by Debra Arlyn
Personnel
Musicians
* Debra Arlyn: Vocals, Piano, Synth, Clav, Rhodes
* Lance Seiders: Bass
* Kevin Colis: Guitar (tracks 1,5,6,9)
* Christian Kremer: Guitar (tracks 2,3,4,7,8,10)
* David Samuel: Guitar (tracks 3,7)
* James West: Drums (tracks 1,6,9)
* Kevin Van Walk: Drums (tracks 2,3,4,7,8,10)
* Matt Kimmel: Drums (track 5)
* Tim Mclaughlin: Horns (track 8)
* Matt Calkins: Horns (track 8)
Production
* Debra Arlyn: Producer
* Steve Sundholm: Masterer and mixer
* Lance Seiders: Engineer
* Jeff Xandier: Photography
* Christian Shope: Additional photography
* Tony Arlyn: Management
References
{{Authority control
2006 albums