Over The Rhine - 'Drunkard's Prayer'

So here's a remarkable surprise. Over The Rhine is one of those bands I've been hearing about for a few years but just found no compelling reason to check them out. However, some coverage over at one of my favorite websites (Looking Closer), convinced me to check out their new record Drunkard's Prayer.

Composed of husband/wife team Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist, OTR at first seem like your typical folk rock combo (think Cowboy Junkies' American cousins). Detweiler's remarkably nimble piano playing anchors the arrangements, which on this album are almost entirely acoustic. Bergquist's voice is conventionally beautiful, but she is also capable of jazz-like phrasing and consistently surprises with her impressive range. Unlike a great breakup album, Drunkard's Prayer looks down the same abyss but opts instead to examine the decision to hang in there (apparently based on the near-end of their own marriage). The result is lovely, simple and affecting, a portrait of love that we rarely hear in pop music without devolving into complete saccharine.

The emotional and musical centerpiece of the record is "Little Did I Know" which begins simply with Detweiler accompanying Bergquist on piano. But Bergquist's voice soon gives way to an instrumental coda that contains probably the most heartfelt saxophone solo I've ever heard on a pop record. It's stunning, and the album is filled with such moments.

I guess I've made no secret about my disappointment with the slate of new music releases this year. But the fact that I've ignored Over The Rhine this long just shows that I've got no one to blame but myself.