Plays Well With Others

Album review

On her three previous albums, Lera Lynn had cultivated an image of a solitary American singer who’s a little prone to darker, more depressing emotions. Thanks to this allure, many people discovered her due to her role in season 2 of the series True Detective where she appears repeatedly as a singer in a bar that’s frequented by the (also depressed) main characters. With Plays Well With Others, she shows a maturity and an openness to other musicians that we haven’t seen before. The album was recorded in John Paul Wite's studio in Florence, Alabama and features several guest appearances. Rich in acoustics and transfused with dark undercurrents, these thirty minutes with Lera Lynn are totally absorbing. Touched by heartbreak, loneliness and worry, she nevertheless manages to harmonize everything in a light and sincere way that hypnotizes the listener. And yet, the young woman might not have been so relaxed when you look at the list of singers accompanying her… Peter Bradley Adams, Dylan Leblanc, Rodney Crowell, Shovels & Rope, and JD McPherson! But Lynn knows how to leave room for other voices in her music, whether they’re instrumental or vocal, while she remains at the focal point. The acoustic and melancholic ballad Crimson Underground sounds almost like a sensual dance between the young woman's voice and that of veteran Rodney Crowell. A dance where the vocal cords listen to each other, respond to each other, and merge with the greatest delicacy. But Lynn also knows how to adapt her tone to her partner. From languorous folk, she engages in a more rock'n'roll pop-country, notably when JD McPherson joins her on Nothin To Do with Your Love, slipping effortlessly from a minor lyricism to an intoxicating pop. She even lets John Paul White perform practically solo on Almost Persuaded, rather placing herself in the background to then join the male voice in an intensely emotional finale. © Clara Bismuth/Qobuz