Waifs
(Compass)
No white winged doves, the women comprising two-thirds of Australia’s Waifs don’t indulge in faerie princess fantasy. “Give me sun, give me dirt, give me water,” sings Vicki Thorn in the title cut. Thorn’s sister, Donna Simpson, sings in “Vermilion” of their “pa as drunk as a bar room rag” and a mother who “died with the flowers in the hall.” Despite their antipodean origin there is something almost Midwestern, plain, in the finest sense, about these remarkably capable women and their soulfully funky folk music; nothing frail or dependent about them. Guitarist John Cunningham, writing many of the tunes—notably the infectious opener “Pony”—and singing lead on “Eternity,” is a fully contributing third partner. But it’s the women, with spiritual godmothers and sisters ranging from Odetta to Roseanne Cash and Toshi Regon, who make this early candidate for anyone’s “year’s best” list shine like a diamond in the desert.
Standout Tracks: “Pony” “Vermillion” RICK ALLEN
