KRISTIN HERSH – LEARN TO SING LIKE A STAR (2007)There’s a sense of comfort in knowing that even after a four year gap, one can pick up Kristin Hersh’s latest CD, put it in the player and there’s a warm continuation, like she’s never been away. The voice is a little more beat up than usual, there’s none of the ranting and wailing of her Throwing Muses days, but the glistening intensity of her songs still shines out with a mysterious allure. There’s something distinctly dark, some would say almost disturbing, about her acoustic confessionals, often enlivened by engaging string embellishments. Occasionally, there are gaps in her tune craft, but on the whole Hersh continues to create haunting melodies, sometimes unstructured, but always evocative.“Learn To Sing Like A Star”, her 7th solo record, sees Hersh playing all instruments except Drums and Strings. Several of the songs reference New Orleans post Katrina and as a former inhabitant of the city, Hersh brings in a personal intimacy for the misfortunes of the many displaced people involved in the tragedy, with lines like "This place makes me feel like I'm dead, haunting it." For all the lonely creative imagery that stems from her voice, she still manages to employ cathartic Guitar interplay for the highlights of the album, the commanding opener “In Shock”, the impending crescendo that builds through every moment of “Sugar Baby”, and the passionately powerful “Day Glow”. She even manages to sound positively grunge era on “Under The Gun”, the discordant Guitar turbulence hails early 90’s vintage, and yet retains a positive originality. “Learn To Sing Like A Star” is a more than worthy addition to a back catalogue of creative accomplishment. Hersh is a one off, a voice in the dark, a candlelight Queen.7/10
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