The Acorn
(Bella Union)
After two years spent on the road, Canadian folk act the Acorn sequestered themselves in an remote northern Quebec cottage to work on their third full-length No Ghost. Shaped by isolation, extemporization, first lights, and sleeplessness, the Acorn's latest bestowal is an album of stripped-down, agrarian canticles that sleep with languid strings and pensive avowals-there's the sway and twinkle of the totemic title track, the plucky guitars of "Slippery When Wet," the muted horns and terra firma vibe of "Bobcat Goldwraith," the earthy sweetness of opener "One the Line," and the dusty, dirt-road desert chorale of closer "I Made the Law."
The only place where No Ghost falls short, if only slightly, is with Rolf Klausener's hushed intones. While the frontman's dove-like voice seems to soar at points, it's often detached from the seraphic expression of their newest record. But such a shortcoming is not enough to disregard No Ghost's lithesome folk - it's just too enduring to ignore.
DOWNLOAD: "No Ghost," "Misplaced" ANNAMARYA SCACCIA
