Full Review

Catherine MacLellan – Water in the Ground

Many Canadian artists fly a little under the radar when compared to their US cousins, but the quality of the albums from independent Canadian artists is easily on a par, and thankfully in the last few years these artists are beginning to find a small niche outside of Canada.

One of the best discs of recent years was MacLellan’s ‘Church Bell Blues’, a thoughtful and beautiful album that deservedly gained strong critical acclaim; this follow up album is destined to cement her as one of the finest young North American singer/songwriters.

There’s much on ‘Water in the Ground’ that has echoes to Dar Williams’ ‘The Honesty Room’, there’s playfulness to the lyrics in places that goes side by side with more thoughtful soulful songs, and the Williams’ comparison can also be heard in her vocals that have the similar ability to focus the listener on the narrative.

Instrumentation throughout is fairly spare and with an acoustic folk edge, MacLellan’s guitar dominates the album, with upright bass, percussion and mandolin providing most of the colour; in addition to the basic sound of the disc, there are some stunning moments of instrumental colour including Justin Rutledge’s banjo on ‘Again from the Start’, and the accordion of Treassa Levasseur on ‘Everything’ll be Alright’.

‘Water in the Ground’ is a beautiful and gentle album full of easy melodies and charm, but the strength of the disc really comes through when the lyrics grab the listener; the songs here are well constructed, thoughtful and full of depth.

As a very worthwhile bonus, the limited edition of Water in the Ground includes Catherine’s debut album ‘Dark Dream Midnight’ as an extra disc; add in stunning packaging that includes lyrics for both discs and you have a compelling two album set. Very high recommended