Sink Or Swim
The Waifs--sisters Donna and Vikki Simpson and Josh Cunningham--honed their craft playing countless gigs throughout the 1990s in their native Australia.Sink or Swimis their third album, and it features 11 selections of acoustic, and occasionally electric-guitar-driven, pop-folk. The songs include Cunningham's "Brief History," a song that's halfWoody Guthrie-style talking blues and half rap, which tells the story of the band; Donna's "Haircut," a song about a breakup that blends anger and fierce joy in equal measure; and Vikki's "Danger," an enigmatic song of loss. The  band's vocal harmonies are tight, and the arrangements feature plenty of strummed and finger-picked guitars, with a bit of banjo here and dab of cello there to fill out the sound. The three members of the Waifs know how to compose a catchy hook and write a lyric that touches both heart and mind, and have enough instrumental chops to deliver the goods. And really, what more do need from a band?--Michael Simmons