Once again, I was unnecessarily cynical. On her own, Carol comes up with an album more varied than either of Knots and Crosses'. The album reminds me a little, in its scope, of Loreena McKennitt, though the influences aren't nearly as eclectic, and Carol doesn't have Loreena's academic range, ambition or approach. It's not bland, but neither is it thrilling in any particular way. Loreena McKennitt's music avoids being background, for me, because she brings a fascinatingly studious air to it, and because she is, I think, currently the reigning master of setting epic verse to music.
Absolution needs something like that, some quirk, some reason to want to listen closely.
Without it, all the songs just merge in my mind, even while they're playing, and while the whole thing is never unpleasant, none of it sticks in my mind, and after it's done I don't feel the urge to hit Repeat that is usually the sign of a disc that made a real impression on me. The cast for this album is a familiar one. On the couple songs when nothing but a woman's harmony voice would do, Alan recruits another of my Boston favorites, ex-Face to Face singer Laurie Sargent. In fact, in spirit the album reminds me very much of Laurie's solo debut, Something with the Moon , which came out last year. The instrument credits for each track on this album reveal at least half a dozen guitar parts on most songs, but they never sound overdone in the slightest.