Lady Croissant

Lady Croissantis alive albumbyAustraliansingerSia, released in April 2007 through therecord labelAstralwerks. Called a "mini-album" by Astralwerks,the collection contains one studio recording ("Pictures") as well as eight live tracks recorded during an April 2006 concert at theBowery Ballroomin New York City. Eight songs were written or co-written by Sia; also featured is acover versionofRay Davies' song "I Go to Sleep", a studio recording of which later appeared on Sia's studio albumSome People Have Real Problems(2008). The album wasproducedbyDan Carey,mixedby Jon Lemon and Taz Mattar atSarm Studiosin London, andmasteredbyEmily Lazarand Sarah Register at The Lodge in New York City.Lady Croissantreceived a mixed critical reception and spawned one single, "Pictures", which was released exclusively viaAmerican Eagle Outfitterson 27 November 2006.
Just over forty minutes in length,Lady Croissantcontains nine "slow-to-mid-tempo" compositions.The album includes one previously unreleased studio recording called "Pictures",co-written byDan Carey, along with eight live tracks recorded during her 17 April 2006 performance at theBowery BallroominNew York City. "Destiny" and "Distractions" each appeared onZero 7's 2001 albumSimple Things, which featured vocals by Sia.Both songs were co-written by Sia and members of Zero 7; "Destiny" was also co-written bySophie Barker, another vocal contributor toSimple Things.
"Blow It All Away" originally appeared on Sia's 2002 studio albumHealing Is Difficult,and "Don't Bring Me Down", "Numb" and "Breathe Me" were each released on her 2004 albumColour the Small One."Lentil" and the cover version ofRay Davies' song "I Go to Sleep", made popular by bothCherand thePretenders, would later appear onSome People Have Real Problems(2008).The album wasproducedby Carey,mixedby Jon Lemon and Taz Mattar atSarm Studiosin London andmasteredbyEmily Lazarand Sarah Register at The Lodge in New York City.
Lady Croissantreceived a mixed critical reception.AllMusic's Marisa Brown called Sia's vocal performance "rich and passionate" and compared it toNelly Furtadoand Morley. Brown stated the band was "tight and lush" and that the music was "very modern, warm and melodic and cleanly intricate".In his review forBBC Music, Paul Sullivan wrote that the album successfully displayed Sia's vocal capabilities and versatility. However, he noted the minimal audience participation and felt that this prevented the album from capturing a "live" experience. For Sullivan, highlights included "Don't Bring Me Down", "Destiny", and "Lentil", which he believed were "executed with an appealing mixture of frankness and fluidity".Mark Perlaki ofGigwise.comawarded the album four out of five stars and opined that the album "portrays an artist who's [sic] star is in the ascendant, whose voice is unrivaled in style and expression, an artist on the brink of deserved and assured greater recognition".TheSelby Times'review called the collection "mesmerising" and a good indicator of Sia's future work.One reviewer forWERScalled the album "breathtaking" and wrote positively of Sia's vocals and the instrumentation. Like Sullivan, the reviewer warned that listeners expecting a traditional live album with "raw cuts and heavy improvisation" might be disappointed.
Roque Strew ofPitchfork Mediafound Sia's Adelaide accent to be a "liability", specifically noting difference in pronunciation between the studio versions of "Destiny" and "Distractions" and the live performances. Strew complimented "Pictures" and "Lentil", the latter of which shined through the "fog of elongated syllables and cut consonants".Popmatters' Mike Schiller felt the instrumentation was "robotic" and found Sia's vocal manipulation and bending of vowels "infuriating", even unintelligible at times. Schiller did, however, favor her vocal tone and found the power of her voice "occasionally transcendent".Stuart McCaighy ofThis Is Fake DIYappreciated "Pictures" but also criticized Sia's performance for lacking diversity and for "incomprehensible" vocals due to her slurring of words. McCaighy concluded that, like other live albums,Lady Croissantwas redundant but would be appreciated by fans.The Australian publicationDNApublished a mixed review of the album in 2010 following the release ofWe Are Born, complimenting Sia's vocals but suggesting that "Pictures"  sounded like aB-sideand that the album's release smells like a "cash-in" on her "recent success".
Credits adapted from AllMusic.
Credits adapted from AllMusic and CD liner notes.