Saturday, May 13, 2017

CD Odyssey Disc 1004: Sarah Jarosz

This next review is my second Sarah Jarosz review in just eight albums. Good thing I like her music.

Disc 1004 is…Undercurrent
Artist: Sarah Jarosz

Year of Release: 2016

What’s up with the Cover? Holy crap – it is the fifth Giant Head cover in a row. While the Giant Head theme has provided some variation (Alice Cooper went with just eyes, and here, Jarosz’s Giant Head is framed to the right) there is no denying a Giant Head conspiracy is upon us.

Fortunately, Jarosz’s Giant Head is a lot more pleasant to look at than Alice Cooper’s, even when it is obscured by hair.

How I Came To Know It: I just told the tale of how I discovered Jarosz when I reviewed another one of her albums (“Follow Me Down”) back at Disc 996 so go check that out for the details. The short version is I discovered her through another bluegrass artist, Aoife O’Donovan.

How It Stacks Up:  I have three Sarah Jarosz albums, and while they are all new to me, “Undercurrent” is my early favourite so I’m ranking it at #1. Sometimes you just gotta take a stand.

Ratings: 4 stars

“Undercurrent” is Jarosz’s most recent album and easily her best to date, showing her growth as a songwriter, singer and instrumentalist. There is a maturity in this record that reveals Jarosz’s old soul, despite her being only 25 years old.

While Jarosz’s traditional training is evident throughout the record, “Undercurrent” takes the flourishes of jazz, pop and blues I noted on 2011’s “Follow Me Down” and better integrate the different styles into something that is unique to her. She reminds me favourably of Lera Lynn, with a bit of Sarah McLachlan pop and Heather Masse folk thrown in.

Artists often gain confidence in their singing after a few albums, and that is the case here, with Jarosz maintaining a lovely sweet tone, sometimes breathy and sometimes bright, depending on what the song calls for, without ever feeling like she has to belt it out or over-sing to make her point.

The record opens with “Early Morning Light,” a song featuring some sublime guitar picking from Jarosz. Whether playing guitar, octave mandolin or banjo, Jarosz has a style that is rich and attention-grabbing. She serves the song first and foremost, but the skill she displays is impossible not to notice, with a mix of controlled energy and easy flow. While I first fell in love with her mastery of the octave mandolin, on “Follow Me Down” it is her guitar work on “Undercurrent” that grabbed my attention. On “Take Me Back” she manages to capture that elusive big sound that approaches Mark Knopfler in both style and delivery, while never being derivative of his work.

Jarosz’ songwriting is also top-notch on “Undercurrent” capturing the nuance and heartache of relationships at the crossroads on “Early Morning Light” and “Still Life” with an honest confusion about where to turn, and the wisdom to know that is a normal state of being in these moments.

House of Mercy” reminded me of mid-career Bob Dylan, and I can see why she features Dylan covers on her earlier albums. On “Undercurrent” she spreads her wings and writes her own Dylan-type songs instead, again without feeling derivative. “Back of My Mind” sounds like Sarah McLachlan. In this case maybe a bit too much, but the song is so good I forgive it all.

The only slight misstep for me is “Green Lights” but my issue here is the production, which is a bit too lush and takes away from Jarosz’s vocals and mandolin playing. It is a minor quibble on a pretty amazing record.

The album ends with “Jacqueline”, a haunting track inspired by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. I’m not much of a fan of the whole JFK story. I grew weary of the idolization of what was a pretty below average president many years ago and I’ve never understood the fascination with Jacquie O. either. However, Jarosz draws out the vulnerability of the first lady so well I not only sympathize with her, I felt like I was seeing her for the first time, through the power of the song. Pretty impressive, given that Jarosz was only three years old when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis died.

Jarosz has gotten better and better with every record she has released, and “Undercurrent” represents yet another high water mark in her development. This is a record that has me excited for what she’ll do next.


Best tracks: Early Morning Light, Everything to Hide, Comin’ Undone, Take Another Turn, Lost Dog, Take Me Back, Jacqueline

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