Neko Case

Country and alt-country are full of likable, pretty-voiced but personality-free singers, each offering subtle modernizations to the classic molds. Left on their own simple merits, these corresponding albums are nice (and easy) additions to a consumer’s catalog. Compared to Neko Case, though, they start to look pretty Plain Jane by comparison.

This is especially true of Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, arguably the best Case record to date -- and inarguably the most important in her development as a solo artist, as it marks not just another testament to her KO-punch voice, but also a real triumph as a songwriter and co-producer. In guest appearances (i.e. John Doe’s “Hwy 5”) and her moonlight gig with The New Pornographers, she is more than willing to play a background role -- although her vocal power never keeps her too far in the shadows. With her solo records, she shines bright lights into every corner of the room.

Although the intimate production and passionate performances suggest that Case is laying herself bare, there is a great deal on Fox Confessor that remains inscrutable even after repeat listens -- and this is to her great advantage. She always sings beautifully, but sometimes it’s while playing storyteller, sometimes while talking from her own life, and sometimes it just isn’t clear at all. For those who pick up the complete package, the mysterious air is enhanced by Julie Morstad, who contributes compelling drawings throughout the CD booklet.

Reverb can be used as a cloak, but Case, like My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, employs it (very liberally) in such a fashion that it seems to somehow draw her more out into the open. Further layering the vocals are Rachel Flotard and Kelly Hogan, who both rise to a tough challenge as backing vocalists.

There is a heavy peppering of near-perfection on Fox Confessor, culminating in “The Needle Has Landed,” which, like much of the album, presents a kaleidoscope of moods, from forceful to self-deprecating, from poppy and jaunty to wistful and melancholy. When her voice cuts through the speakers at the very beginning -- “Here I am…” -- the production is so warm that the lyric feels literal. Other highlights include the driving western atmospherics of “Hold On, Hold On” and the patient melodic purity of “Star Witness.”

The more traditional churchy songs, like “John Saw That Number,” are lively and yet distant; the rest of the album is so indelibly hers and hers alone -- and ambitiously moving away from genre confines -- that momentum is tripped, albeit only briefly, by this foray into the past. -- Adam McKibbin, The Red Alert

Neko Case hasn't had much need to prove her credentials as a major artist since making her solo debut with 1997's The Virginian, but she's been refining her skills in the recording studio on each subsequent release, and with 2006's Fox Confessor Brings the Flood she's fashioned an album that can cautiously be called a masterpiece. As always, Case's voice, an instrument of impressive strength, grace, and expressive power, is the star of this show, and she's never sounded better than she does here, but what sets this apart from her other fine work is her growth as a songwriter and producer. Case wrote or co-wrote all 12 tracks on Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, and her tales of failed friendship, faith stretched to the breaking point, and love that causes as much ache as comfort are subtle and expressionistic but deeply evocative, conjuring images and feelings that linger long after the album has ended, especially the spectral "Star Witness," the moody yet romantic "That Teenage Feeling" and "Hold on, Hold On," and the darkly beautiful closer, "The Needle Has Landed." And Case and her co-producer, Darryl Neudorf, have assembled a superb cast of musicians to accompany these songs, among them members of the Sadies and Calexico as well as Garth Hudson of the Band, Howe Gelb from Giant Sand, and Kelly Hogan. Together they've sculpted a dozen elegant sonic landscapes that are beautiful and richly detailed while meshing with the moody textures of the songs in their open space and unwillingness to crowd either the singer or the other players. The cumulative effect mirrors both the beauty and the sadness that lurks within the human heart, and Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is a rich, mature, and deeply satisfying piece of music that deserves and demands attention -- if this isn't Album of the Year material, it's hard to say what is. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide