All the Leaves Are Gone

Some more of that psychedelic new folk everyone seems to be have been falling in love with, but what really makes this disc standout from the wealth of like-minded artists is Foster’s unique voice that’s very clearly operatically trained. Not only does it have a piercing clarity and a breathtaking range, but it has the perfect bravado to make these almost vaudevillian songs work. The guitar can be pretty whacked out as well with all over the place solos, but the focal point never drifts from her shrill dramatic vocals. All very startling and very nice; her voice is really something else. 60s influences very evident. I really enjoyed this one a lot; go forth and shatter some glass. My picks: 1, 3, 5, 7
*1- starts with careful picking and clear beautiful singing, has a determined feel, builds dramatically, something sounds exotic in the electric guitar
2- wavering voice, dramatic and powerful, guitar goes nuts soloing at the end
*3- a little Byrds-like, catchy, her operatic voice goes all over the place, the ending just might make some listeners’ testicles cringe a bit
4- cat power-like, calmer and sweet, ends with another aria-like display of vocal range
*5- dramatic in a cave-like way, sort of haunting
6- shrill voice, slow and methodical, it’s called “Silly Song,” but it sounds pretty serious, a little male backup, whistling (maybe that’s the silly part) over march-like drums at end
*7- rocking, distorted voice, wanky guitar
8- piercing high pitch voice, a bit of distant male backup, sparser and less chaotic, midtempo
9- tambourine, not sure why the guitar feels “sunny” but it does. I think it’s songs like this one that the label are referring to when they say she summons Patti Smith’s “mojo” (their word, not mine)
10- very beautiful, mostly acoustic
11- alternates between lullaby-like pleasantness and dramatic wavering voice
12- rocking, lots of that 60s goodness