Laura Veirs, a regular guest with The Decemberists and a passionate songstress in her own right, is an all-American. Born in Colorado, bouncing around to Minnesota (and briefly to China) she’s now a “native” of Portland, channelling her frustrations into music. Laura joins with some impressive collaborators including K.D. Lang, Neko Case and Brian Blade to name but a few.
A deep love for the heartland courses through this record. Electric guitars and fiddles splash through tunes with country twang. Her breathy, woodwind-like voice dance on air but her words often sting. “How can it be so cold out here in America?” she gracefully coos on acoustic ballad America. “Everybody’s packing heat in America, training their barrels on the city streets of America.”
Old dustbowl bluegrass lilts Sun Song and Fenders crank into overdrive for shuffling rocker Say Darlin’ Say. Pace tumbles over alt-country rock on That Alice, a rock bio of jazz harpist Alice Coltrane. Folky guitars and melancholy harmony haunt Dorothy of the Island (aka Motherless Children) and vivid harp and guitar spark up Sadako Folding Cranes which deals with the atomic horrors of World War 2.
Amidst a female singer-songwriter flood, this isn’t a flat batch of cardigan-clad ditties fit for hatchback commercials. In essence, Warp & Weft carves up a hearty slice of adult contemporary Americana. It’s an odd melting pot akin to the real America: a bright, yet often tragic land of harmonious contradictions.
BY TOM VALCANIS
Best Track: Dorothy Of The Island
If You Like These, You’ll Like This: LAURA GIBSON, ALLISON KRAUSS, ROBERT PLANT, GILLIAN WELCH
In A Word: Spirited
