SARAH HARMER - Oh Little Fire

Songbird Sarah has spent her solo career oscillating between exquisite adult pop and Canuck Appalachia. 2005's I'm A Mountain was a collection of the latter, so a more radio-ready vibe is in order for her first LP in five years, Oh Little Fire. If that sounds like a less-than-enthusiastic appraisal of the Harm's latest, allow me to clarify: a radio station whose airwaves were permanently adorned by her dulcet tones would be a lovely one. Indeed, it's a rookie mistake to see this lady's significant gifts as being anything like pedestrian simply because they have mass appeal. She doesn't pander. Instead, she presents herself unadorned and direct, allowing that voice to ring out like the aural Pavlovian bell it is.

Oh Little Fire bears the same casual clarity that made If You Were Here and All of Our Names such treats. This relaxed feel and the album's short running time does mean that the first listen breezes by. But the melancholic undertones of songs like "Captive" and "New Loneliness" really begin to smoulder after that, giving the record the deep touchstones it needs to fully take root. Late-album duet with Neko Case "Silverado" is a real highlight, with Harmer's timbre rubbing off on the often blustery-voiced Case. Here, the two are kicking back like friends tending to the dying embers of campfire singalong. It is a little fire, but it burns brightly nonetheless.