Anaïs Mitchell - The Brightness
Reviewed by billwhite
Despite her irritating voice (the baby girl vowels and clipped consonants), precious lyrical references (quoting Anaïs Nin and making who-knows-what from the “Shenandoah” chorus), and a single melody approach divided by one recurring interval, I was won over by The Brightness, the singer/songwriter's debut for Ani DiFranco's Righteous label. There is something about this voice trying to cut through the blandness of her rural Vermont that seems necessary, although it is still too amorphous to bear definition. [www.anaismitchell.com]