The voice of Erin Durant is really an extraordinary thing. The New Orleans-born singer brings her soprano tones to tunes that are both jazz-influenced and elegant on her new record. Firetrail also has a few surprises in its grooves.
Opener "Greening" has a hint of early Kate Bush about it, while the excellent "Alone with You" marries a loose arrangement, with a few horns, with a vocal performance closer to prime Nanci Griffith. Durant's clear tones are strikingly beautiful, and the arrangements around her are smartly done, and pleasantly bold. Elsewhere, "If Love Had a Name" keeps things simple and direct, Durant's voice centered in a light setting. Regrettably, there's less variety in the arrangements the longer the record goes on.
Astute listeners may hear a hint of Mary Hopkin, or even Sandy Denny in some of Erin Durant's vocal performances here. I'm not saying that this is the equal of those legends, but Durant's vocal prowess is significant and lovely enough to earn at least that reference for a point of comparison for potential listeners to this. There's a lot to recommend about Firetrail, and I'm certainly now interested in hearing more from Erin Durant in the future.
Firetrail by Erin Durant is out now. Details below.
[Photo: Maximilla Lukacs]