Drunkards Prayer
After the heavily producedFilms for Radioand the sprawling double CDOhio, Over the Rhine retrenches for this stunning follow-up. Recorded in the living room of the duo's home, the low-key glow that results brings the music even closer to its source. Bits of folk, jazz, pop, and country intermingle as the singing and songwriting husband-and-wife partnership of Karin Bergquist and Linford Detweiler let the sparkling, yet subtle melodies of these ten originals--plus a lovely cover of "My Funny Valentine"--dictate the sparse instrumentation and languid but never haphazard tempos.This is music of delicate beauty, tinged with regret, sadness, and hope, yet devoid of pretense. It sounds like these songs fell out of the sky, drifting through the clouds and arriving with help from Bergquist's exquisite voice. Her double-tracked vocals dart through tinkling piano lines on "Born," making the already exquisite song shimmer. Stand-up bass and occasional cello and sax along with a dash of percussion bolster these chamber-styled ballads that float like lilies on a pond. But there's a flickering intensity to like "Firefly," in which Bergquist repeats "My memory will not fail me now," that adds an edgy tautness to this emotionally stirring album.--Hal Horowitz