Soft Place to Fall
No doubt about it, Deborah Coleman's got chops. Voice, guitar, songwriting: they're all there, and musings as to why this woman hasn't yet achieved crossover success are necessarily uncharitable toward mainstream tastes and predilections. There's no question she could teach a thing or two to all those young axe slingers littering the blues-rock landscape; briefly put, she's better. Coleman seems to be heading in a more contemporary direction withSoft Place to Fall, in contrast to her previous release, 1998'sWhere Blue Begins. It might be her tastes are changing, or it might be she's making a bid for the mainstream. Unfortunately, the more rock she mixes into her blues, the less powerful the result. For better or worse, the blues are Coleman's strength. However,Soft Place to Falldoes boast some incredibly good music, especially on the last few tracks: "So Damn Easy" has the nicest swing and sway to it, "Nothin' to Do with Love" goes straight for the gut, and the album ends on an extremely high note with "The Day It Comes." It's just a pity that it takes so long to hit its stride, especially considering the rocket-fueled energy Coleman is so capable of. --Genevieve Williams