Album Notes

See review links on left under LINKS.
Pitt News & Jerseybeat.com! More to come.

"Knee Deep In Sanity" is the first LP album released by Stephanie White and the New Jersey Philth Harmonic, a soul/rock band with elements of funk and ska. "We were really just looking to create something for people to get familiar with us and our music. It was the first group of songs we wrote together, Robbie and I, so there's no real theme to the album but it makes so much sense." The album features nine tracks, three of which were recorded acoustically in an old forge. Stephanie White and Robbie LaFalce began collaborating upon her return from Hollywood placing as one of the top twenty one overall women on American Idol, season 5. "I'd always wanted to work with him- he had a ska band, "The Miasmics", that played locally and I would go see them and just be amazed with his style of playing and then I found out he wrote much of the material. He's brilliant." The first song they wrote together, "Tough Enough," is a reflection of Stephanie's experience on Idol. "When I came home everyone was apologetic about my return and questioning what I would d o next. I told them I would make my own music and play for whoever would listen- you know- the way they used to do it. I can handle the pressures of the industry, I'm tough enough.
The most intimate song on the album is "Sustain," a rock ballad that displays the innocence and helplessness of losing a loved one to something uncontrollable. On writing the song, Robbie says: "My friend was going through a tough time, knowing that he would lose someone close to him to cancer. I wanted to write a song that portrayed the fear and realness of that experience."
Then there's the love songs- "Here We Go Again" and "Girls Have Expenses" are bluesy, R&B tunes that wail about the mistreatment of love. "You Won't Believe" is a light-hearted acoustic jam about finding your love that lives on the other side of the world- an experience Robbie found while traveling through Europe. "Teardrops" is a folk-waltz fairytale with an unhappy ending, a song based on Stephanie's first love. "Then one dark day it came/ my prince masked by his shame/ 'cause he knew he couldn't stay/ but he rescued me anyway." "You're Not Alone" is a rock jam about not being able to get through to someone because they put up their guard to the world.
"Bogged Down" is an up-tempo funk that deals with the pressure of everyday stresses. "Robbie started writing this one, and ironically enough, didn't have time to finish it. So I added the last 2 verses and we worked it out together. It's an encouraging song that everyone can relate to- everyone's racing against the clock at one time or another, or all the time."
“Rogue” is a track that Robbie wrote about a girl, by using an allegory of the Marvel Comic book character of the same name. It’s a punchy bluegrassy/pop song with a very acoustic flair, featuring upright bass and a beautiful soprano saxophone solo – Stephanie’s voice really shines as she tells the story of a woman too beautiful to be touched.
"Did I Change You" is the last track on the album. This fist-pumping disco song wails about an old love and questions whether the end of the romance was the reason for their ex's current misery. "It's amazing- the impact you can have on other people, so you have to wonder after a relationship ends, if you are the reason for that person's change in character."
What brings the album together is the incredible musicianship that all the band members bring individually to the table – putting their own flair on their own parts and making the songs come alive.