Rating: 4 stars out of 5

The Jade Diary are a mixture of the pop elements of Fleetwood Mac (with vocalist and main songwriter Cheryl Lim reminiscent of Stevie Nicks in her vocal delivery) with some folk and light rock. This is a slick, professional EP with carefully-chosen songs, strong production work by Soundbaker Studio and lovely artwork.

The EP opens with Love Called Me Home, a mid-paced pop song introduced with an eerie guitar which immediately caught my attention. The percussion is used effectively in the verses to drive the song, before building to a catchy chorus hook. The strongest of the four tracks, the song is topped with smooth vocals and thoughtful lyrics.

What She Wants is the rockiest moment of the EP, while the title track and Wanderer are slower ballads. The title track is a beautiful song with heartfelt vocals, while Wanderer was the weakest of the four with its bland melody line.

The only critique I would have of The Jade Diary is that I would like to hear some more variation in their sound. The band's sound can border on being too middle of the road at times. Perhaps it would be worthwhile to introduce more up-tempo material and edgier, more textured sounds to add greater sonic interest.

Overall, Landscape of Dreams is a strong and musically-mature release from a promising group. I was especially impressed with the arrangements and I look forward to hearing more material.

-Cissi Tsang

Judging from the audience reaction we can see that ‘The Jade Diary’ is set to establish themselves on both the local and national scene. Fine arrangements of the emotive songs plus the engaging stage presence of lead vocalist Cheryl Lim drew great applause from the crowd.

What I like most about this band is their versatility, managing to successfully combine pop/rock up tempo songs with more emotive ballads. On the night, their personal and low-key acoustic set contrasted well with the full band numbers. This is a band to take note of.

Carmel Charlton
West Australian Folk Federation
Event Organiser

The Jade Diary were the stars of the show, launching their debut EP 'Landscape of Dreams' ... Listening to it calls for red velvet cushions, wrought iron candlesticks and floaty silk scarves, with the ghost of Stevie Nicks twirling around in the background. It's rich and beautiful, with a subtle elegiac quality that pushes it a little deeper into your heart than you'd expect.

In a city (Perth) rich with musical resources comes another fine new talent, The Jade Diary. This EP is my first hearing of the band and there is good impacting pop and rock sounds, with tender and catchy elements in a well produced offering. Vocalist and principle songwriter Cheryl Lim has much quality, singing very honestly and tenderly, displaying pure emotion from the insightful lyrics. I would probably like to see the band up the tempo a little more but this EP is only a taste of what The Jade Diary can develop in their sound. The arrangements are well compiled and I look forward to greater scope in their future releases because the potential is strong.

- Carmine Pascuzzi

The Wheatbelt Mercury gave us a great review recently:

From Simon McMurdo, on 10 April 2008:

"U2 With Female Vocals, or perhaps Vanessa Carlton with more guitar? Summarizing the sound of The Jade Diary isn't entirely easy, it's surely easier to check out their Sellaband page and try to take in as much of their music as possible.

Their genre is essentially in rock and pop- though each track adds something original to the formula...

'Love Called Me Home' oozes pop sensibility, with a strong country vibe- especially present in the serene vocals. The track begins as some sort of rocky power ballad, reminiscent of artists such as Alanis Morisette and Janis Joplin. However the chorus is a far more soothing affair, putting a main focus on the delightful voice of Cheryl Lim.

Her vocals prove their worth again- in the second track 'What She Wants'. This time, a rockier sound gives The Jade Diary a more passionate feel- particularly the chorus which has a very strong hook, and interesting vocal lines.

The final track on offer at Sellaband is the interestingly titled 'Wanderer', which opens on pure piano but soon finds itself accompanied with a soft rock backing. The semi-acoustic, unplugged effect provides a new strength for the band- as their sound conjures up a more emotional side to the band.

Whats notable about The Jade Diary is their truth, honesty and raw emotion that channels through each song, and what i find is their greatest strength is that the tracks all provide an insight into the deepest emotions and feelings so many will experience in their life.

So don't take too long, it won't be long before the final chapter of The Jade Diary is written, make sure you're names inside..."

From Paul McMaster, on 8 April 2008:

"This EP must be one of the best I heard for such a long time.So professionally produced.
All the songs are really impressive.
You can just tell The Jade Diary will make one awesome 50K CD.
Destined for the big time."

From George Wan, on 8 April 2008:

"What more could you ask for? It's all there: sublime vocals, awesome sound & heart-felt lyrics.
There's one more thing they could have - your belief. Be part of their journey through SAB and beyond. You won't be disappointed."