Rising binary stars shine brighter.
Letitia VanSant and David McKindley-Ward’s new album could be a game-changer. For them. This is one of the great duos in the Americana firmament today but not as well-known as it should be. Will their latest album ‘Eye of the Storm’ remedy the situation? It should. Their guitar work creates a delightful and complex background to their vocal harmony. The result is a beautiful and emotional collection of new takes on traditional songs and new songs with traditional sounds.
‘Eye of the Storm ‘starts out with a song of the same name The clear opening notes draw you in, prompting a question: ‘Is this an old ballad I’ve forgotten?’ But the sound is bright and shiny, like a new penny. This is no ye olde ballad but a new one telling age-old story, as we hear when VanSant starts singing – both strong and vulnerable, controlled yet with a wildness that breaks through. The words slowly create a beautiful rendering of the liberating power of love. It is a song about something for which we all long and which, if we are blessed, some of us find: “Can you tell/ You beckoned me from my own shell/ From drowning in the wishing well/ From hoping for a better version of myself”.
VanSant and McKindley-Ward make their first new song sound like a classic but the second one really is. ‘Old Paint’ is an old cowboy favourite, which they make their own. Next up ‘When You’re Older’ , which captures the awkwardness that many of us have felt at one time or another. VanSant recognizes the drama of everyday anxiety and dignifies it. This takes both the courage of vulnerability and the confidence of an accomplished lyricist. VanSant has ‘em both. ‘Lowlands’, the next song is a classic. McKindley-Ward takes the lead on this traditional shanty, performing it as a ballad, as did Anne Briggs. He does it well, showing his facility with traditional Celtic and English folk music.
Halfway through the album there is ‘Believer’. The song opens with guitars weaving in and out of each other, creating a dreamy backdrop to the lyrics. It could be a modern spiritual, as much question as answer. This is followed by the only instrumental on the album, ‘Queen of the Earth, Child of the Skies’. It is VanSant and McKindley-Ward’s take on a traditional song often identified with the legendary West Virginian fiddler Edden Hammons who reworked the Irish air ‘The Blackbird’. VanSant and McKindley-Ward’s version is one that allows you to sit back in a comfortable rocking chair and let it you waft you away.
The last four songs are VanSant originals. Each explores the depths of human experience. ‘Crimson’ is about the excitement and fear that comes with beginning a relationship. VanSant elevates the ordinary to the sublime, recognizing its beauty and power. “Just one careless move would lay my heart bare/So I live in the hope that you will come closer/But you might just disappear into thin air”. In ‘Half-Empty Cups’ she captures self-inflicted pain:“Too tender to touch Lean on your crutch Bandaged and blackened and blue…Said too much in a breathless rush/And scared her away”.
The penultimate song,’Tall Trees’, is a lyrical drama of a tree brought down by a storm. It is also a metaphor for the loss of a protective and dominant figure: “Oh give me the strength to grow into that space/When tall trees fall. “ The album ends with ‘Ashes’, a song of loss and the need for resurrection: “And I know I must keep breathing/And I know I must come back up/Though I’ve scattered your ashes/And you’ve returned to dust I cannot part with your love.”
Each track on this album is different. Listening to it is like looking through a kaleidoscope. Move from song to song and it feels like turning the tube, with new and beautiful patterns forming each time. Instead of mirrors and coloured glass, there are guitars, two voices and poetic insight into life’s depths.
