Cindy Morgan explores just about every genre but pop on her sixth studio release. There’s techno, Gershwin-like jazz, lush orchestral balladry, a Latin-flavored samba, some guitar-based rock and gentle piano-based tunes. All the songs are catchy, well produced and often employ inventive orchestration and time signatures.
The surprising weakness of Elementary is the lyrics, most of which lean toward predictability—quite atypical for Morgan, a universally acknowledged standout songwriter.
But when she does shine in this department, the light is devastating, deep and complex. "Walk in the Rain" delivers an unusual marriage between words and melody, as the sad protagonist seem
s determined to live in a depressed state despite all the beauty God provides, yet this emotion is undergirded by an infinitely happy melody. Morgan’s voice is superb and full-ranged here, as she croons softly and yelps like Janis Joplin.
"Sunshine" provides a very detailed, insightful lyric that brings you right into Morgan’s homespun tale. "Love Can" and "Love Is Waiting" are both subtle and deep.
But Elementary’s home-run song is "In These Rooms," a powerful piano ballad in which Morgan mines the depths of her childhood pain, revealing struggles and hurts that will touch and move most listeners.