To Be Still

Insound Staff Pick - 2008! The follow-up to Alela Diane's 2006 debut The Pirate's Gospel is both flinty and beautiful. She draws from a tradition that might include Sandy Denny and Karen Dalton. 'Accompanied mostly by her acoustic guitar, newcomer Alela Diane sings stark, ghostly folk. She's already flaunting a large, lived-in growl flavored by antediluvian blues and jazz inflections' - Spin. 'Echoing wide, her timbre is rich and thick and her range is higher than most acoustic singer-songwriters, bringing each track to peaks and valleys that draw you in' - Venus.