Ana Egge
Album: Bright Shadow
Label: Grace/Parkinsong
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.anaegge.com

Born and raised in North Dakota but since relocated to New York, rootsy songwriter Ana's eighth album Bright Shadow is a collaboration with trio The Stray Birds. Maya De Vitry (fiddle, banjo), Charles Muench (upright bass) and Oliver Craven (mandolin, fiddle, slide guitar) provide just the right level and type of instrumental support for Ana's charming, understated songs that comfortingly address some often intense life issues.

The double-edged album title is itself a reflection of that aspect of its contents: a simultaneous existence of two apparently contradictory shades of being and meaning. And this in return is mirrored in Ana's smooth, and often seemingly effortless, delivery, mellow and relaxed with an enviable control of emotional expression. This is best demonstrated on the haunting, tender Rock Me (Divine Mother), with other cuts like Fifth Of July proving almost as persuasive. On the closing song, The Ballad Of Jean Genet, Ana departs from her personal and spiritual reflections to pay homage to the inspirational writer who overcame injustice and hardship. On the latter track in particular, the stunning, delicate balance of instrumental colours achieved by The Stray Birds is indicative of the musical bond between the trio and Ana - it's a partnership that works very well indeed. All of the disc's material is self-penned by Ana, except for a neat backporch-style cover of Dolly Parton's Wildflowers, which as it turns out fits in superbly with the theme and mood of the whole collection. Maybe the album's first track, Dreamer, is a bit of an odd choice for opener, for with its jazzy gait and upright bass virtually the only accompaniment it's not really typical of the more homespun country-flavoured demeanour of the rest of the disc - but its mix of stealthy and sprightly suits the lyric.

In general, Ana's songs display a vision of life that's universal and involving; even if the central premise of a song like Flat Top Guitar is a little too well-worn for comfort, Ana still seems to have plenty to say, and she communicates her thoughts most appealingly. So it comes as a shock, then, that the disc is over and done in a mere 28 minutes. What a pity.

David Kidman