Voyageur

Audio Mixers: Justin Vernon; Craig Silvey; Denis Tougas.
Recording information: Fall Creek, WI (08/2010-05/2011); Toronto, Canada (08/2010-05/2011).
Photographer: Cameron Wittig.
Singer/songwriter Kathleen Edwards has different kinds of traveling in mind on her album Voyageur. There is the geographic kind, of course, but also the journey through the seasons of nature, and, especially, the trip a love affair represents from its beginning to end. Edwards seems to be in transit right from the start, at least in terms of intentions, with the folk-pop leadoff track proclaiming, "I'm movin' to America," before the singer quickly adds, "It's an empty threat." Still, that's a good representation of the themes of the record, as Edwards explores troubled feelings, often expressing dissatisfaction with a lover she is simultaneously obsessed with and unhappy about. "I don't want to feel this way," she says on the slow, ethereal "Pink Champagne," but by the next song she is declaring, "Anywhere you go, I'll follow," even though the song is called "Going to Hell." The folk and rock arrangements, sometimes ambient, sometimes reminiscent of Sheryl Crow (especially the deliberately paced electric guitar rocker "Mint"), support Edwards' listless, melancholy soprano singing, which in turn reflects her unhappiness and pessimism. She manages to sing through her torment on Voyageur, in hope that the journey is ultimately redemptive. ~ William Ruhlmann