Reviewed by Anthony Longville

Gone are the good old days of CCM when a woman with a propensity to rock was allowed to do so, as long as she included six slow, syrupy ballads on the album as well! And thank God for that. This is the third CD release from Jill Parr, a lady with a voice and a BIG one at that. As the opening track "Reach" (thankfully not a cover of the S Club 7 classic!) explodes into life after a piano intro, it's clear that this lady can rock. I kept looking for voice comparisons and kept coming back to Avril Lavigne, although she cites Sheryl Crow and Kelly Clarkson as influences. The album is dominated by a heavy guitar-driven sound, and those crunching guitars are used to good effect on the slower numbers such as "Just The Way I Am". There is a reality lyrically which is refreshing especially on the title cut: "I'm tired of pretending that I'm not broken/Give me the strength to be me again." The voice never lets up. Whether it's up-tempo or slow you never get the impression that Jill is giving less than 100%. Jill contributes to the writing on most of the tracks. A second, enhanced CD includes song videos and commentaries on each of the songs.

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