June 15, 2010

Publication title: philly.com, vol. -, Iss. -, pg. –
Place: Unknown
Writer: Dan DeLuca

Give a listen

For the last several years, Sarah McLachlan, the Lady of Lilith Fair, has made herself a friend to stray dogs and cats rather than bother to release new compositions. That’s cool: hearing her hits as a daily soundtrack to ads for shelter animals was enough for the casual fan. And even if you don’t go for McLachlan’s painstakingly crafted, sensitive lyrics or breathy, cooing voice, her songs were always compelling.

The doe-eyed McLachlan’s first studio album of new material in seven years is no less convincing or radically different from her previous work, though this time she’s working through a broken marriage. Her voice remains a bit dreary even when the vibe is jaunty and the lyric is upbeat (“Loving You Is Easy”). She leaps gently into her higher register through the soft electro-pulse of “Awakenings” but barely lingers through the song’s subtle hook.

Like the guitar-washed “Forgiveness,” “Awakening” is so subdued in emotion and tone, you hardly remember you’re listening to a woman singing about heartbreak. You have to stretch to hear the pain in McLachlan’s voice in the crushed-velvety “Illusions of Bliss.” Then again, at a time when most female pop artists smash you over the head repeatedly with everything they’ve got, McLachlan’s sleepy intensity can be a godsend.