I wondered if we had heard the best of Brandi Carlile after the dissapointing The Firewatcher's Daughter. But here she is, back on track with By The Way I Forgive You. Not quite up the standard of her best work, but Every Time i Hear That Song and What Ever You Do are classics. The backing of the twins Tim and Phil Hanseroth is as good as ever, this time supplemented by some string arrangements from the late and great Paul Buckmaster. From early Elton John to Brandi Carlile. Wow.
You know from the first few bars of the first track World Away that this is Lissie on form. But then next up is something very unlike her. Crazy Girl has too many co-writers and suffers as a result. We have to wait until the superb Blood and Muscle and Feels Good to get back to the Lissie we love. Later tracks are just OK, but we want more than that.
Not immediately as good as their first three albums The Big Black & The Blue, The lion's Roar and Stay Gold, but on repeat listens, Ruins gets better and better. Klara and Johanna Soderberg are maturing wonderfully well into songwriters. The first track Rebel Heart is classic folk rock but I preferred the quieter To Live a Life. A superb collection.
Stitch of the World is the latest album form Tift Merritt. The stand out track for me is Heartache is an Uphill Climb. Unfortunately all the other songs, whilst inoffensive, are not in the class of her other albums. But her voice and the storeys behind the songs are as classy as ever. Maybe it will take a few more listens to appreciate them, but I'm not holding my breath.
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